High School Life
by animeaddict0811
Summary: Naruto is in high school and he likes a girl but it's a one-sided relationship. He later on gave up on her and developed feelings for another girl but his bestfriend likes that girl. Will he fight for his feelings or give up on her for his bestfriend?
1. The meeting

**Summary: **NaruXhina, SasuXsaku, ShikaXtema, NejiXten and slight KibaXhina. Naruto is in his first year in high school. He likes a certain girl but she won't return his feelings. He later develops feelings for another girl but his best friend likes that girl as well. Will he fight for his feelings or just give up on her for his best friend? What will high school life bring Naruto?

**Setting: **Konoha Gakuen

**A/N: **Hi there!I know the story might be a bit lame since this is my first fanfic ever. I'm not exactly a NaruHina fan but my best friend likes it so much that since she has done so much for me already, this is the least I can do. I like Naruhina but not so much, although I really like Sasuke Uchiha. Please be kind with me cause I really don't know how to make a really wonderful story but please R&R. I accept criticisms and please tell me everything you like and don't like in my story. I might have some bad grammar and spelling errors so please tell me. Thank you and I hope you enjoy it! ^_^

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Too bad…**

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Chapter 1 - The meeting

"…Aahh…" said Naruto with a big yawn.

He was still half asleep. He looked at his alarm clock. His eyes suddenly widened showing his surprised reaction.

"Aaahh! Is this really the time? I'm so gonna be late! Oh man! Why does this have to happen again!" said Naruto while starting to panic.

He rushed out of the covers and quickly got dressed. He zoomed out of his apartment and ran straight to school without even fixing his hair, brushing his teeth or even taking a shower. **[A/N: gross! Haha!]**

Naruto Uzumaki, a highly enthusiastic and energetic fifteen year-old high school student who was in his first year of high school is yet again rushing for school to get there on time.

"Finally!" said Naruto while approaching the school gates. He was panting and sweating.

He ran up the stairs since his classroom is on the second floor of the building. He was about to turn at the corner when he suddenly bumped something or someone.

"…Ow…What was that?" Naruto whispered as he rubbed his head. He saw a cute girl who looks like they are of the same age. The girl sat on the floor while holding her head with her left hand. She looked like she was a bit dizzy.

"Are you okay, miss? I'm sorry about that, I'm such a klutz!" Naruto held a hand out to her. The girl blushed. She seems hesitant whether she should take the hand offered by Naruto or not. But it also seems that her hip is a little bit painful because of the sudden fall so she had no choice but to accept it.

"…oh, no…I'm fine…thanks…" the girl assured while reaching out to Naruto's hand.

"That's great." Naruto grinned. The girl blushed but started to pick up her stuff which fell when they bumped to each other. Naruto saw this and decided to help her. At the last item, they coincidentally reached out for it at the same time. Naruto accidentally touched her hand and the girl flinched.

"Sorry, did I scare you?" Naruto asked.

"No…sorry…" the girl bowed her head. "and thank…you…"

Naruto was surprised then he rubbed his head. "Haha, you shouldn't be thanking me…I bumped on you remember? And are you okay? Your face is a bit red…do you have a fever?" Naruto asked with concern in his eyes.

"Well, no…I'm just…not used to…uhm…talking to…well, to boys…" the girl shyly whispered.

"Oh, is that so?" Naruto smiled. "What if, you have friends which are boys? Then you won't be shy talking to people anymore, especially to guys like me…well, do you have guy friends?" asked Naruto.

"Well, not really…I talk to boys…sometimes too…because of my duties…but I don't know if I'm a friend…to them…" the girl lowered her head…she looks sad.

"Then, I shall be your friend!" Naruto proclaimed happily. "Let's be friends shall we? Then you can have more and more friends! Wouldn't that be great?" Naruto smiled.

The girl just stared at him with a light blush on her face. She was speechless. It was the first time a guy asked to be her friend. Naruto suddenly remembered that he was running late for class.

"Sorry but I have to leave now." Naruto apologized. He then dashed away leaving the girl standing there. "See you later!" said Naruto while waving goodbye. The girl just stood there, surprised of the sudden turn of events. After a few seconds she went on her way but still had that light blush on her face.

While Naruto was running to his classroom, he had a vague thought that the girl he just met was somehow familiar but he was not sure about it. Then he remembered that he forgot to ask her name. 'I'm so stupid' Naruto thought.

When he reached his classroom, he opened the door only to find his childhood best friend staring out the window. Kiba looked at him and was surprised.

"Wow, now that's a big surprise…you came a whole lot earlier than usual, and I really mean a whole lot earlier." Kiba said with astonishment.

"What do you mean? But more importantly, where are the others?" a confused Naruto asked.

"Why don't you take a look at that clock over there, it might answer your question." Kiba pointed to the wall clock near the shelves.

"What? I'm an hour early? That clock is probably broken." Naruto was so surprised.

"No stupid! Your clock is the one that's broken. You probably winded up an extra hour on your clock by mistake last night." Kiba was a good guesser.

"…maybe…" Naruto was ashamed. "But, I rushed my butt to get here and this is what I get? I didn't even take a bath!"

"Oh, so that explains the smell…hehe" Kiba laughed.

"I'm not smelly! I was panicking! Geez, get off my back!" Naruto was pouting.

"Haha…I'm just kidding!" Kiba was still laughing, "but make sure you fix your clock. You know very well that you need the sleep."

"yeah, I'll do that." Naruto was back to his normal self.

"Since we have so much time in our hands, what about we play ball at the gym before the basketball club comes?" Kiba asked.

"Sure! This is gonna be good!" Naruto grinned. "Then let's have a bet. The loser will treat the winner to some lunch."

"Alright, I'm up for the challenge!" Kiba agreed.

The both of them played basketball in the gym until the basketball players came to practice. Since they were both sweaty, they decided to take a shower at the school's shower area. **[A/N: The guy's shower area to be exact.]**

Kiba Inuzuka, Naruto's childhood best friend along with his other friends always supported Naruto. They were friends since pre-school. They are of the same age.

"Ooohh! That was fun! Now, you'll treat me to some ramen! Hahaha!" Naruto cheered with a big grin.

"Fine, you win, but you were just one point ahead of me." Kiba raised an eyebrow.

"But as the saying goes, 'a win is still a win', right?" Naruto grinned.

"Alright," Kiba sighed. "let's go back, school starts in ten minutes."

"Sure!" Naruto is so happy that he can't stop smiling.** [A/N: He is always smiling isn't he? Such a carefree guy...]**

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**Whew! Finally, It's finished!**

**It's a short chapter, sorry about that…but I'll do my best on the next chapter.**

**It might take some time for me to upload my next chapter cause I'm busy with school.**

**I hope you liked it and please continue on reading my fanfic until the end! Thank you so much! Please Read and Review!**


	2. My friends

**A/N: Hey there everyone! Thank you for reading my story, and please continue on reading it until it finishes. Here's the latest chapter. All of the reviews so far had kept me motivated so please tell me what you think of this chapter. I'm looking forward to it!**

**Disclaimer: I most certainly don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 2 - My friends

"Hey Kiba, where have you been?" Choji asked while munching on some chips as Kiba entered the room. Then a familiar person was behind Kiba. "What's going on? Why is Naruto here? Am I hallucinating or what?"

"We were at the gym and played ball to kill some time." Kiba and Naruto approached the group. "Choji, he's the real thing. I'm betting all of you are surprised."

"Are you kidding? Did he drink some kind of potion?" Lee asked in disbelief.

"Hey, did you guys really think that it was impossible for me to get here on time?" Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Absolutely!" all of his friends laughed at Naruto's pouting face.

They were suddenly interrupted by the loud giggles and cheers of the girls who were adoring the great Uchiha and the mighty Hyuuga. **(A/N: The Uchiha means Sasuke and The Hyuuga means Neji. Those fan girls are crazy about them…so am I, haha…just kidding.)**

The voices kept on getting louder and louder. All the guys could hear were '_Sasuke, you're so cool!', 'Neji, I love you', 'Both of you are the greatest!'_ compliments and cheers. The fan girls were so noisy that the whole room was filled with their annoying voices.

"Urgh, what a drag…" sighed Shikamaru.

"Get used to it already, we know that they won't stop." Kiba rubbed his head in annoyance.

"Why do they have to be so noisy?" Lee crossed his arms.

"That's why girls are so annoying." Shikamaru stated.

The two 'heartthrobs saw the gang and approached them. The gang looked annoyed and the two 'heartthrobs' knew the reason. Although, they did not expect to see Naruto at school at the moment.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Sasuke gave a light smile.

"Oh, nothing really…just my ears ringing because of your annoying fan girls!" Naruto yelled.

"They're such a drag. Do us a big favor and shut them up, would ya?" Shikamaru sighed. **[A/N: Shikamaru doesn't do anything but sigh, huh?]**

"Fine, we get tired of them at some point anyway." Neji complained.

The two 'heartthrobs' turned around to face their fan girls and they both _SMIRKED_. All the fan girls screamed in happiness and then their noses bled and they fell on the floor, completely unconscious.

"I guess that took care of it." Sasuke sighed.

"Happy now?" asked Neji.

"Absolutely! Thank you cause now I feel a whole lot better." Naruto grinned.

"But are you two really sure that it's okay to leave them like that? I mean, they are gonna lose a whole lot of blood if we don't do something." Kiba inquired.

"Nah, that's okay. They'll be fine. This happens almost everyday and they'll be conscious in just a few minutes so let's just leave them be. I don't want them to bother us again." Neji assured them.

"Hey, is this really Naruto? How come he's here on time? That's a really rare sight." Sasuke looked straight at Naruto.

"Oh, that's him alright…surprising, huh?" Choji answered while munching on a new batch of chips.

"Yeah, but what's the story behind it? Did he come here to meet a girl?" Neji asked.

"Oh, just shut up would ya. I don't wanna tell. It's too embarrassing on my part." Naruto pouted and crossed his arms while sticking his tongue out.

"Oh, c'mon tell us. How embarrassing was it?" Lee was very curious.

"It's nothing okay, forget about it." Naruto was eager to change the topic.

"Well, Naruto…" Kiba started. "…thought that he was really late for school when he saw his alarm clock…"

"Hey, Kiba don't tell them, you idiot!" Naruto interrupted but Kiba didn't seem to listen. Lee covered Naruto's mouth and he held both his arms behind him. Naruto tried to struggle but it was futile. Lee's grip was so tight that even Naruto was not able to loosen it.

"And so…" Kiba continued the story. When he finished, the others tried to hold their laughter but they ended up laughing at Naruto's stupidity.

"Wow, haha… that's so stupid Naruto." Choji also laughed but resumed on eating his chips before classes start.

"Yeah, that's so foolish." Sasuke stated.

Naruto was red of embarrassment. "Geez, I make mistakes too you know…so just shut up!"

"Yeah, that's true." Kiba patted Naruto's back. Naruto pointed at Kiba.

"You traitor!" he yelled.

"Naruto, you're over-reacting. You said it yourself, people make mistakes, so it's okay that I tell them. See, they're so happy early in the morning." Kiba smiled awkwardly.

"Don't try to trick me, I know you very well." Naruto glared at Kiba.

"Haha. I'm telling the truth." Kiba was cornered. Then he suddenly pointed out somewhere in the room. "Oh, look Naruto, it's Sakura!"

"Where? Where?" Naruto quickly averted his gaze and scanned the room for his beloved Sakura. Then Naruto realized that he was tricked since there was no sign of Sakura anywhere in the room. "Kiba!"

When he was to look back at Kiba, Kiba had already escaped and hid somewhere. He was just about to look for him when the school bell suddenly rang and the students entered the room.** [A/N: Sakura was included in the 'students entered the room' phrase. She was outside the classroom while talking to her friends.]**

The students including the gang went to their respective seats. Kiba saw that the coast is clear and sat on his seat. A few seconds later, the homeroom teacher came in and they all greeted him.

"Good morning, Sir Kakashi!" the students said in unison as they stood up to show respect to the teacher.

"Good morning to all of you as well. You may take your seat." Sir Kakashi greeted the class as he put his belongings on the table.

The students sat down and the class started. Naruto kept on glaring at Kiba throughout the whole class. '_I'm gonna get you later, you stupid Kiba!'_, was what Naruto kept on thinking the whole time.

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Well, I told you guys that I'd make a longer chapter but instead, this one was a bit shorter.

**I'm such a failure.**

**Instead, I'll just update a bit more often so I can compromise.**

**I'm sorry for being so lame. I'll do my best to meet your expectations. Please R&R! If I don't get much reviews, I might not get too motivated and it will take long for me to update my story. Please review or PM me. Thanks!**


	3. Hi, Prez!

**A/N: Hi there! I had seven reviews so far… I just hope that I get even more. Please R&R! I hope you like this chapter! It's the awaited Hinata's entrance chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the following characters.**

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**Chapter 3 - Hi, Prez!**

After the class, the gang gathered. Naruto finally got his revenge on Kiba and they were all talking when suddenly, a soft and gentle voice interrupted to them.

"Well…uhm…e-excuse…me…" the voice from behind said.

They all turned around to the direction where the voice was coming from. They saw a girl with a long, dark purplish hair with pale eyes standing in front of them. The girl flinched when the guys all stared at her.

"Oh, hey there Hinata, is something wrong?" Neji was the first to speak.

"Uhm, well….I…" Hinata was shy.

"Oh, c'mon Miss President, you can tell us." Kiba encouraged her.

"Miss President?" Naruto interrupted.

"Yeah, her name is Hinata Hyuuga, the student council president, and also my cousin. You are so stupid that you don't even know your own classmate." Neji answered Naruto's idiotic question.

"Wow! She's your cousin? So that's why her eyes are so similar to yours! How come I never knew that she was the student council president? You are so lucky Neji! You have such a cute and smart cousin! Why didn't she have a nosebleed like the others?" Naruto just kept on throwing questions at Neji and the others.

Hinata suddenly blushed. Naruto did not notice that his head is so close to Hinata's. He was too focused on asking questions and did not realize that he was moving closer and closer to Hinata. Their faces were only a few inches away. Hinata turned bright red.

"Hey idiot, you're scaring her!" Kiba yelled as he quickly pulled Naruto away from the frozen Hinata.

Neji grabbed Naruto's neck and whispered, "Do that again you idiot, and I will kill you" in his ear.

"Eeek! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do that! I'm sorry!" Naruto was practically begging for his life.

Hinata was okay again and was looking worried as she glanced at Naruto and Neji fighting.

"Don't mind them, Prez."** [A/N: Prez is short for Miss President or President, just to be clear.]** Sasuke was sitting on his seat while reading a book. He saw Hinata's concerned face. "They do this all the time. And Naruto is usually the one involved."

"Oh…" Hinata gulped and faced the whole class. "Uhm…E-excuse me…Everyone!" She yelled but with a gentler tone. Everyone stopped whatever they were doing and stared at her. Hinata blushed. **[A/N: She always blushes! So cute! Hehe!]**

"Uhm…well…everyone, I was uhm…well…wondering if you…uhm…will be kind enough…to help u-us in the…well…preparations for th-the school festival…" Hinata was barely able to say it.

"Was that what you wanted to say earlier? I'll help, Prez! You can count on me. But I'm automatically obliged to help because I'm in the student council." Kiba smirked.

"Th-thanks…Kiba", Hinata blushed.

"Well, It's such a drag, but I'll do it anyway." Shikamaru sighed.

"Don't worry Hinata, I will help you. Even Sasuke and Sai will help out as well.

"Yeah, It'll be fun, I guess." Sasuke agreed.

"As long as we can have snacks, I'll help." Choji smiled.

"I'll be there, prez! Gaara and Kankuro will come too, right?" Naruto gave a thumbs-up sign.

"Th-thank you…everyone" Hinata blushed and lowered her head because she was too shy.

"Don't mention it! Prez is so cute and we don't want to disappoint her because we don't want to see her cute face get upset." Naruto gave his foolish grin.

He mentioned 'cute' and Hinata is sensitive to that word and other words which would normally make a girl blush. Hinata turned red like a ripe cherry. Suddenly, Naruto felt a very disturbing 'evil' aura behind him. He turned around and saw Neji giving him a 'death glare'. He flinched and his face turned grim because of the certain doom he'll receive due to his careless actions. Naruto immediately ran away and Neji quickly ran after him.

Hinata was worried because Naruto got in trouble because of her. She was quite upset. Kiba saw her and comforted her.

"What's the matter, Prez? You look upset." Kiba was concerned.

"Oh…it's nothing…I just hope that Naruto won't get…mad at me…" Hinata looked down.

"It's okay, that guy won't get mad at you because of this incident. Cheer up, okay?" Neji smirked.

"Oh, okay then…thank you…" Hinata looked relieved and smiled at Kiba.

Kiba was in a daze. To him, Hinata's smile just now was like a shining gem right in front of his eyes.

"Kiba? Are you okay?" Hinata looked at Kiba.

"Oh, I'm fine…let's finish the plan for the school festival, shall we, Prez?" Kiba was back to his normal self.

"Oh, alright." Hinata followed Kiba to the student council room where the other student council members were already thinking of plans for the festival. The two joined them and the student council's meeting for the festival started.

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Well, did you guys like it? Hinata finally showed up! Isn't she cute?

**In the next chapter, we will find out what happened to Naruto and Neji and a lot more.**

**This chapter is unbelievably short! I swear, the next chapter is a lot longer than this one.**

**I'm apologizing in advance. I won't be able to upload the next chapter because I have exams this week. I'll probably be able to update in a week or so. Please understand. Thank you!**

**Please keep on supporting. Review please! Thanks!**


	4. New revelations

**A/N: Hey everyone! Animeaddict0811 is back! And I'm here to bring you chapter 4 of High School Life! I'm aiming to have at least 12 reviews on my story or else I won't upload chapter 5...I want to know if the readers really want to read the story…please cooperate with me! And now, please enjoy! R & R!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters in my story.**

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**Chapter 4 - New revelations**

"Darn it Neji! You chased me around the whole campus and not just once but three times now and you know how ginormous our school is! It's like I ran on a marathon! I'm dead tired!" Naruto panted. He is drenched in sweat. They stopped the chase behind the school building. They were too exhausted to continue running.

"You're not the only one, you idiot!" Neji is also covered in sweat.

"Neji, can't we just forget what happened? I mean, it's not that serious!" Naruto complained.

"What are you talking about? I won't let you get away, you moron!" Neji glared at Naruto. They were a few meters away from each other. They were so tired that they can't run any longer and just chose to yell their reasons at each other.

"C'mon! I didn't know that she would react that way! Seriously, if I knew what would happen, I'd restrain my actions. I'm sorry, okay?" Naruto was still out of breath.

"Then you should have asked us first, stupid! She is very shy and is very sensitive to boys! Everyone knows that! But you just crossed the line!" Neji yelled.

"You are just being over-protective!" Naruto sounded a bit mad.

"And what if I am? She is my cousin and I ought to protect her from anyone and anything no matter what! That is my duty!" Neji sounded even madder than before.

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"I wonder what those two are up to right now." Kiba wondered while staring out the window.

"They've been out for about an hour now, right?" Choji mumbled while munching on his chips.

"Yeah, and they missed Sir Azuma's class. Good thing he didn't notice that they were missing or they'd be in trouble." Shikamaru rested his head on his right hand.

"Well, based on Neji's reaction earlier, It seems that he's really mad. He is probably beating up Naruto by now." Sasuke commented without looking away from his manga.

"That could be true but Naruto was able to develop his running skills because he is always racing to get to school on time." Kiba pointed out.

"Yeah, but Neji shouldn't be under-estimated either. He is a born athlete and genius, just like Sasuke, if I should say so myself." Lee mentioned.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, let's just see what happened when those two comes back." Shikamaru sighed.

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"Hey, I just wanted to be friends with her! Is that so wrong? I admit that it was my fault for being so insensitive but I said I'm sorry!" Naruto reasoned out.

Neji was quite shocked. He didn't know Naruto's intentions. He thought that Naruto only wanted to tease Hinata. Then he smiled a faint smile.

"Well, if that's the case, then I guess I'll be kind enough to let you off the hook this time. Seeing that I'm exhausted from all that running." Neji still had the faint smile on his face. "But if you make her cry even once, I'll pulverize you. Got that Uzumaki?" Neji gave a bit of glare on his last remark.

Naruto was quite puzzled with Neji's expression. He thought that he was gonna get yelled at or get punched. He was relieved and grinned. "Yes mister Hyuuga! Every minute she spends with me and my friends would be very enjoyable and I won't ever make her cry."

"Just make sure that you are telling the truth." Neji dared.

"Believe it!" Naruto still had that grin on his face.

"Alright then…let's get back before any of the teachers notice that we are missing." Neji started to walk back to the school building and Naruto followed.

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"Hey guys! What happened to the both of you?" Choji was the first to ask as the two boys entered the room. All their classmates were busy doing whatever they were doing and Choji was the first to notice them.

"Yeah, you were gone for a long time. We thought you guys would never come back!" Lee chuckled.

"It seems that you are still in one piece Naruto." Sasuke was still reading his manga.

"Oh, it's nothing really…we just had a long chase then we had a talk and were okay again." Naruto had his childish grin on his face.

"I see so you were able to escape from Neji's wrath, huh?" Kiba laughed.

"Guess so…haha" Naruto laughed as well. And everyone laughed along.

"Hey guys, what are you doing?" Sakura asked the guys while walking towards them with the other girls including Hinata.

"Oh hey there, ladies!" Lee waved a hand.

"Hi Sakura! Hi Hinata!" Naruto also waved a hand.

Hinata got a bit red and hid behind Sakura. She peeked a little and greeted "Hi to you too."

"Hey, Hinata, I'm sorry about earlier, I'm so inconsiderate. I didn't know that you were so sensitive with boys and I'm so stupid." Naruto scratched his head while chuckling a bit.

"Oh…no, it was my fault. Sorry. Did…did big brother hurt you?" Hinata looked concerned.

"Big brother?" Naruto was confused. He didn't know that Hinata had a big brother.

"She meant me, Naruto. Were cousins but she calls me big brother even though I'm just a few months older than her." Neji was standing beside Hinata and Hinata immediately clung to Neji's shirt. **[A/N: She clung to him but not too much that the shirt would get wrinkly.]**

"Oh, I see…don't worry Hinata. Your big brother is a very kind person at heart. Haha. He won't hurt other people needlessly." Naruto smirked.

"Hey, shut up. Quit blabbing about nonsensical stuff." Neji was embarrassed. Hinata was blushing because of Naruto's smirk. She held Neji's shirt a bit tighter.

"Haha. Neji is embarrassed." Naruto started laughing.

"Moron! Shut up or you'll really get it this time!" Neji clenched his fists.

"Alright, I heard you." Naruto stopped laughing.

"So, do you girls need anything?" Choji asked. He obviously ran out of chips to snack on cause he isn't munching on any right now.

"Well…" Tenten spoke up but she didn't continue her sentence.

"Well?" asked Shikamaru, obviously bored.

"Well, we just wanted to ask if you guys are busy after class." Sakura finished Tenten's sentence.

"Well, I guess we have some free time, why do you ask?" Kiba sat on the window sill.

"We thought that you guys might want to go to the newly-opened restaurant downtown." Temari asked.

"Food!" Choji screamed happily.

"Our very generous boys should be generous enough to treat us there, I mean, that's what boys should do for lovely ladies just like us." Ino winked at the guys.

"And why exactly should we do that?" Sasuke grumbled.

"Because you guys are gentlemen so you should be really kind to us." Ino replied.

"We don't want to be kind to you." Sasuke replied harshly.

"Hmph! You're such a cheapskate! It's a good thing that I chose Sai. He is kinder than you are. I admit that I had a huge crush on you once but when Sai came to my life, I realized that you are not worth it!" Ino crossed her arms. **[A/N: Just to make it clear, Sasuke and Ino never dated. Sasuke never dated anyone...yet. The part 'It's a good thing that I chose Sai', Ino meant that It's a good thing that she gave up on having crazy delusions that she and Sasuke would be together someday and instead chose Sai.]**

"Good for you. And I'm not a cheapskate. Your meals are none of my concern" Sasuke rolled his eyes hinting that he does not care one bit.

"Argh! I can't believe you! You are such a mean person!" Ino glared at Sasuke but Sasuke just ignored her. "Sakura, why were we attracted to him?" Ino pointed a finger at Sakura.

"Eh? Why am I involved in your fight?" Sakura was blushing.

And so Ino and Sasuke continued their little quarrel until Neji finally decided to stop them.

"Alright, you two, that's enough. You two are starting to annoy me." Neji complained.

"Hmph. Whatever." Sasuke continued to read his manga.

"Hmph! So mean!" Ino made an annoying face at Sasuke while sticking her tongue out. Sasuke just ignored her.

"So, anyway, do you guys wanna come with us? We can have a little chat." Sakura offered again.

"Well, I guess we could…" Shikamaru thought about it.

"But you'll have to treat us!" Ino butted in once more.

"Fine, we'll treat you, right Naruto?" Kiba looked at Naruto.

"Yeah, sure. Why not? It's not a big deal." Naruto smirked.

"Hmph! At least some guys here are actually gentlemen!" Ino glared at Sasuke once more, trying to make him feel guilty.

"Anyway, who else are coming?" Tenten asked.

"Since Choji is coming, I guess I'll come too. I have nothing else to do." Shikamaru sighed. Temari was quite happy.

"I'll come as well!" Lee cheered happily.

"Hey Neji, are you coming as well?" Sasuke asked while turning the page of the manga.

"Yeah, since Hinata is coming, I should be there as well. Are you?" Neji looked at Sasuke.

"If you're coming, I guess I'll come too. But I won't treat anyone." Sasuke glared at Ino. Ino glared back. Sakura was really happy that Sasuke would come as well.

"Alright, everyone, get back to your seats. We will start our lesson." Teacher Kurenai said as she walked towards the teacher's desk.

Everyone obeyed promptly. After their class with Teacher Kurenai, which happened to be their last class for the day, all of them fixed their stuff and headed for the restaurant.

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Well, it didn't end up being as long as I promised cause I had to cut the chapter in half. The other part would be on the next chapter.

**If you noticed, I don't use -kun, -san, -chan, or whatever cause this fanfic uses a different plot so I want to use as much English as possible.**

**Please read and review. No reviews, no next chapter. Hehe. ^_^**


	5. Hopefulness and Annoyance

**A/N: Hey everybody! Ready for Chapter 5? I was so inspired by your reviews! I expect to receive more! I reached 15! Yippee! I wonder if I'll reach 20 reviews this time…I'm really hopeful! Anyway, let's just proceed to chapter 5!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 5 - Hopefulness and Annoyance

Everyone reached the restaurant. They went in and took the large unoccupied table at the corner of the place. The spot they chose was big enough for all of them. They all took the menus and ordered their food.

"So…" Ino started, "what's up with our boys lately?"

"Well, there's not much to say, really…" Kiba was looking out the window.

"What about our girls?" Lee asked expectantly.

"Well, Sakura baked a cake today and it was delicious." said Ino. "Then…" Ino continued, "…and finally, Hinata played a perfect melody on the flute and it was simply astounding. Does that answer your question?" Ino looked at Lee and she seems happy with her detailed answer.

"Hn." Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"What does that supposed to mean? Huh?" Ino was annoyed.

"It doesn't concern you." Sasuke replied coldly as usual.

"Why you!" Ino wanted to smack Sasuke's face.

"C'mon, both of you. Stop arguing with each other. We're at a restaurant. It's embarrassing." Lee complained. The two just stared at Lee for a few seconds then looked away.

"Anyway, all of you did well today." Neji complimented. Ten-ten blushed a bit.

"Oh, before I forget, where's Gaara and Kankuro, Temari?" inquired Kiba.

"Oh, they both caught a cold last night and they had to stay home to relax. They'll be attending school tomorrow so no worries!" Temari reassured.

"Oh, is that so? I hope they get better soon." Kiba was relieved. He then looked at Hinata. "Uhm hey, prez. Do you know where Shino is? I figured that since he is also a part of the student council, you might have an idea on his whereabouts.

"Oh, Shino was busy with his research…he said he needed to look for more bugs to observe…" Hinata answered a bit normally.

"Oh, is that so? He really likes bugs huh?" Kiba chuckled and Hinata chuckled as well.

"Oh, and Ino, how about Sai, where is he?" Naruto asked the now-calmed-down Ino. She looked at him and smiled.

"He was up so late last night because he was too pre-occupied with his paintings that he didn't notice the time. I went by his apartment this morning and he had a fever. He said that he probably slept at 4 am. So he had a terrible headache and I asked him if I should stay and take care of him but he said that he'll be fine and that I should attend school. Isn't he caring?" Ino's eyes were filled with happiness.

"…uhm, yeah, I guess…" Naruto just smiled at how in-love Ino was.

"How long have you been having a relationship with Sai?" Shikamaru decided to speak up.

"Well, 3 months now, I guess." Ino blushed. "When he confessed his feelings to me, I was shocked. I thought that he was just joking around but he was so sincere and I was deeply moved by his love."

"Hn." Sasuke interrupted Ino's thoughts of love.

"SASUKE!" Ino was furious. "You are just jealous!"

"In your lousy dreams." Sasuke hissed.

"Yeah, right, as if I'd ever! I hate you Sasuke!" Ino crossed her arms.

"That's my line." Sasuke gave her a mocking look.

"Urgh!" Ino was really ticked off. Sasuke just continued to read his manga.

"Anyway, that's so romantic, Ino. Sai was probably so sweet, huh?" Sakura tried to change the subject. Ino quickly forgot her anger and smiled at Sakura.

"Yeah, totally…he's the sweetest guy of all…" Ino was so happy again.

"I just wish that something like that would happen to me too…" Tenten glanced at Neji and dazed off a bit. Neji gulped.

"Yeah, if only a certain person would have enough nerve to tell me his feelings…poor me, having to like a person like that…" Temari smirked at Shikamaru. Shikamaru was uncomfortable.

"Yeah, if only the person I really like would like me back as well, even if it's just a little bit, I'll be so happy…" Sakura smiled at Sasuke. Sasuke just stared at her for a few seconds but looked away after a while. Sakura just sighed.

Naruto saw the intensity in Sakura's eyes when she was looking at Sasuke. Naruto had a crush on her since they were in Junior high. He loved Sakura so much. That is why he gets extremely jealous when Sasuke receives her full attention. Sakura is very nice to Naruto, that's probably the reason why he had a crush on her in the first place. Her long pink hair, her posture, her greenish eyes, her voice, her smile…everything about Sakura looked so perfect to Naruto's eyes. But her eyes would only seem to focus on only one person. And that person is none other than…Sasuke Uchiha.

* * *

"Wow, thanks you guys! That was delicious!" Ino cheered.

"Yeah! And we had a fun time with you gals!" Lee said with a grin.

"Hey, what's wrong Choji? You look upset." Naruto asked the very grim looking Choji.

"I spent all my allowance on my food…" Choji said sadly.

"Well, that's pretty much obvious Choji. Judging from what you ordered: 2 chocolate sundaes, 2 plates of steak, a plate of spaghetti and a big bowl of soup, you will definitely spend all your allowance." Shikamaru explained with details.

Everyone laughed at Choji while he was drowning himself with self-pity.

"I guess we should be leaving now!" Temari looked at her wristwatch.

"Yeah, it's starting to get dark out and we need to get home before it gets really dark." Tenten agreed.

"Do you want us to bring you girls home?" Lee asked kindly.

"Oh, it's fine, we can manage…thanks for asking." Ino rejected the offer but in a nice way.

The girls started to walk away but they didn't notice that Hinata isn't with them.

"Uhm…thanks…for the treat!" Hinata was behind the guys and they were startled by the sudden thank you.

"Oh, sure, it's no big deal! We are friends and that's what friends do!" Naruto said with his usual cheery voice.

Hinata gasped, blushed and she nodded. "Thanks…I had a great time." and after saying that, she smiled. Her smile was so pretty. The guys were dazed by Hinata's smile but mostly Naruto and Kiba.

"Hinata come on! Let's go now!" Ino yelled from the distance. Hinata ran towards them and she waved goodbye to the guys which were now officially confirmed as her 'friends'.

"Wow, she smiled didn't she?" Naruto asked, barely snapping out of his dazed state.

"Yeah, I saw it too…" Kiba sounded satisfied for some reason.

"Hinata's smile is a really rare sight…she probably smiles like that once every week or usually on special occasions. Good work, Naruto." Neji said with a smirk.

"Heh…heh" Naruto laughed sheepishly.

Kiba gave Naruto a strange look. No one noticed that but it wasn't a look that seemed friendly it seemed a bit more competitive or weird but Kiba just shrugged the feeling off. Kiba wasn't sure himself.

"Phew!" the other guys said in relief.

"At last they finally left! I mean, SHE finally left!" Neji sighed in relief.

"Yeah, it's such a drag! I don't think I can take anymore of her creepy stare!" Shikamaru growled.

"Urgh! Annoying…" Sasuke hissed in annoyance.

"Let me guess, Neji's SHE is Tenten, Shikamaru's is Temari and Sasuke's is Sakura, am I right?" Kiba guessed and as I said, he is a good guesser.

"Exactly!" the three guys said in unison.

"C'mon! At least someone likes you! They looked at you with love in their eyes…no one ever did that to me!" Naruto was so upset.

They all fell silent. They understood Naruto. Naruto was an orphan ever since he was born. His parents were said to be dead due to a mysterious accident. No one cared for him except for Kiba and his friends, Sir Iruka, and an old woman who took care of him and raised him but sadly, she passed away when he was seven years old. Girls don't like him and they treated him like an outcast.

"Naruto…" Kiba broke the silence. "let's go get your ramen. You are going to your part time job later so you have to get charged. That sundae you had won't fill you up."

"Alright! Thanks pal!" Naruto was back to his normal, happy self from hearing the word 'ramen'.

Alright guys, we'll be heading to Ichiraku's ramen shop now. Take care and be careful." Kiba faced the guys who were relieved that Naruto isn't depressed anymore.

"Ok, you guys take care too. And good luck with the job Naruto." Sasuke smiled at Naruto.

"Thanks guys! Bye now! See ya all tomorrow!" Naruto laughed happily.

They all waved goodbye to each other and went on their way. Naruto and Kiba started to head to Ichiraku's ramen shop. In Naruto's dictionary, Ichiraku's ramen shop is defined as the heavenly place for the most heavenly ramen of all.

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Well, that's finished! Whew! Did you like it? I hope you did! More reviews would get me more motivated so please review more so I'll update faster!

**Hey, I want to ask your opinions about this, if you would prefer my chapters short just like the chapters I had so far but I'll update faster or do you want them longer but I'll update in probably two weeks or so…I just want to know…thanks!**

**Please read and review and I hope you'll wait for the next chapter! ^_^**


	6. Work

A/N: Hey! I'm so happy! I got like 20 reviews the next morning after I just updated chapter 5! Cool…maybe this time I'll get 30? Haha…anyway, here's chapter 6! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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**Chapter 6 - Work**

"So how's your work coming along?" asked Kiba as he started eating his ramen.

"Ooohh…everything's great!" Naruto managed to speak while 'devouring' his ramen.

"If I remember correctly, you work at a wine shop, right? But your work starts at 6:00 and ends at 10:00. And you still have to do homeworks and study. You hardly have any free time…" Kiba was kind of concerned about Naruto.

"Um…yeah." Naruto stopped eating his ramen for a bit. "But we leave school at 4:30 so I use the time before work to study and finish homeworks so I can sleep earlier. I just carry wine bottles and arrange stuff at the shop. It's not that tiring and the pay is good." Naruto started eating his ramen once again.

"But school starts at 7:30. And you are the type of person who needs more sleep than an average human being." Kiba chuckled a bit.

"What do you mean? Are you saying that I'm some kind of alien?" Naruto raised his eyebrow.

"No…I didn't say anything like that." Kiba chuckled a bit more. "Anyway, fix your alarm clock, okay? You need the sleep. But make sure you wake up early enough to get to school just in time."

"Oh, alright…thanks for reminding me! By the way, why were you early today? That's not like you…" Naruto is starting on his second bowl of ramen.

"You would know?" Kiba spoke sarcastically. "This is the first time you actually got to school early. You have to thank me that you don't get detention slips. And you are lucky that Sir Iruka is our homeroom teacher, if it was another teacher, you'd get in so much trouble. I always told you about this but your mind is always preoccupied. I told you many times that I am a part of the student council." Kiba sighed and shook his head.

"Uhm…is that so? Haha…silly me…" Naruto was red of embarrassment.

"What is it that's always in your mind, anyway?" Kiba had a faint smile on his face, giving Naruto a hint. "Or should I say, WHO IS IT?"

"Kiba!" Naruto was still red. "Someone might hear you!"

"Oh, come on! Almost all of our classmates and teachers know that you are crazy about Sakura Haruno." Kiba laughed.

"Well…" Naruto was still blushing. "She might hear you!"

"Oh, come on! I'm pretty sure that she already has an idea about your feelings or she might already know about it a long time ago." Kiba laughed. "Anyway, she won't hear me, stupid."

"What?" Naruto was shocked but still as red as a tomato. "And what do you mean, she can't hear you?"

"It's not a big deal…what if she knows? It doesn't change a thing. You'll still like her." Kiba is chuckling now. "She is with the other girls. They are having a sleepover at her house right now. So don't worry, okay?"

"True…" Naruto was finishing his ramen now. It seems that he is not blushing anymore. "Anyway, how did you know about the sleepover?"

"Hinata told me about it. I was early this morning right? I usually go to school 15 minutes before classes start but today I came extra early because a meeting was supposed to take place. But it was cancelled." Kiba is also finishing his ramen.

"Oh…wow…you and Hinata are so close!" Naruto is having his third bowl of ramen. "I'm so jealous of you…cause you are so responsible." Naruto was smiling.

"Oh…yeah…" Kiba had a light blush on his face from Naruto's remark about him and Hinata. Naruto didn't manage to see it though. "Anyway, you are much more responsible than I am."

"No way, man. I can't even get to school on time. You have good grades." Naruto complimented.

"Hey, you work and manage your apartment room, you can maintain good grades and you are still cheerful." Kiba returned the compliment.

"Hehe…you think so?" Naruto laughed sheepishly as he finished his ramen.

"You think I'd lie?" Kiba smiled. Naruto just laughed.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Sakura's house…

"Hey girls, you think Neji will like me?" Tenten asked as she hugged a pillow.

"Of course Tenten! You are adorable!" Ino reassured.

"Really?" Tenten was blushing.

"Really! And I hope Shikamaru will like me too. I know he is lazy and stuff but I just don't know why…every time I see him, my heart just starts pounding and I just…I don't know…I like him…" Temari blushed.

"I know exactly what you feel. I just wonder when Sasuke would actually look at me and like me the way I like him." Sakura smiled.

"C'mon girls! Don't give up! Just don't overdo it okay? They don't want clingy girls." Ino cheered them on.

"Hey Sakura…I noticed this, but do you think Naruto likes you? I mean I always see him staring at you sometimes." Temari inquired.

"Uhm…I'm not actually sure about that…it's just that, I also see him staring at me sometimes…" Sakura was eating some cake.

"What if Naruto really likes you? What are you gonna do? Will you like him back?" Tenten was eager to know Sakura's answer.

"Well, I admit that he gets annoying at times but he is a really nice person." Sakura smiled. "I like Naruto but not the way I like Sasuke. Naruto is just a friend."

"Naruto would be heartbroken if he heard that." Ino laughed. "How about you Hinata? You've been too quiet."

"Oh…well…I…" Hinata was eating some cake.

"Well? Is there a certain boy that you like?" Temari asked while flipping some channels on the TV.

Hinata blushed. "Well…I don't think so…" Hinata just smiled. Suddenly, two boys popped in her mind. Those two boys were…Kiba and Naruto? She blushed.

"Oh, come on, Hinata, there is no need to keep it a secret from us." Tenten encouraged her.

"Really…there is no one right now." Hinata was still blushing from the thought of those two boys.

"Is that so? Okay then. But make sure to tell us when you have a crush on a boy okay?" Sakura smiled at Hinata and she just nodded and resumed on eating her cake.

"Sakura, why did you like Sasuke anyway? He is just a fool!" Ino sighed.

"C'mon Ino, don't say stuff like that." Sakura tried to stop Ino.

That night, the girls slept at 10 pm. Ino and Sakura argued about Sasuke. And they gossiped on some celebrities and some other stuff.

* * *

"Hey, I better get going now. I just have 15 minutes left before work starts. I don't want to be late. Thanks for the treat!" Naruto said as he rubbed his tummy from eating 5 servings of ramen.

"Alright then! Good luck and Take care. See you tomorrow pal." Kiba waved goodbye as Naruto started to head to the wine shop.

"Sure! Same to you!" Naruto waved back.

Naruto headed to work and Kiba started to walk home.

* * *

After Naruto finished his work, he headed home and finished his homeworks.

"Aaah! Today was tiring." Naruto sighed as he laid on his bed.

Naruto stared at his room's ceiling for a while and then he remembered something. He remembered the girl she met before he went to his room. The girl he actually bumped into.

'Now that I think about it, that girl this morning looked exactly like…Hinata Hyuuga.' Naruto thought to himself. 'Urgh! Darn it! How could I forget? That is why she looked so familiar. Besides, we've been classmates since junior high, how could I forget her? Well, since she rarely talks, she didn't make that great of an impact in my life…I guess…'

Naruto was frustrated because of his own stupidity. 'But now that I think about it, she looked pretty cute this morning.' Naruto realized what he was thinking and then slapped himself. 'What in the world was I thinking? I should only think of Sakura, and no one else…but I guess, Hinata was really cute back then…'

That night, Naruto kept on thinking about Hinata and Sakura. He is fighting with himself. [A/N: That's so stupid! Really now! But that happens to us sometimes, right? Haha]

Naruto sighed after 10 minutes of fighting with himself. 'Sakura, sweet dreams…and everyone too…and you too, Hinata…' And with that, Naruto drifted to sleep.

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Well? What do you think about this chapter? Huh?

**Please review or else I'll think that you don't like my story and I might not get motivated anymore and update later or worse…discontinue and delete!**

**I don't think that'd happen right? Stay tuned for the next chapter!**


	7. Meeting the other friends

**A/N: Sorry everyone! I was so busy with school that I wasn't able to update. I didn't get that much review, but here's the next chapter for those who like my story. Enjoy and please review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I'd be the happiest person if I did.**

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****Chapter 7 - Meeting the other friends**

Naruto was running late for school again, but this time, he really IS late.

"Oh man! Why does this have to happen all the time!" Naruto yelled as he ran to school. It usually takes 20-30 minutes to school by foot. But Naruto can get there in only 10-15 minutes because he runs as if there's no tomorrow. That explains him being so athletic.

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"I see, so Naruto is late again, as usual…so yesterday was just a one time, thing…" Sir Iruka sighed as he continued grading some papers.

"Hey, you think he'll still go to school? I mean, homeroom is almost over and there's no sign of him." Sai asked while flipping pages in his book.

"Yeah, he'll come. Get used to it already. He always do this, remember?" Kiba yawned.

"He probably slept late again…the poor guy." Kankuro said.

"Yeah, but he never misses any of his classes right? Unless he is sick, of course." Gaara decided to speak up.

"Yeah…oh, by the way, Gaara and Kankuro, I heard that you were absent yesterday because you got sick. What happened?" Kiba asked.

"Oh, right…" Kankuro looked away. Kiba was confused.

"It's his fault. He went to the meadow to feel the breeze. I needed him so I went there. It ended up raining really hard and we got soaked. We weren't able to find a shade cause even the trees were useless and the meadow was so wide. We ended up getting sick." Gaara gave a thorough explanation.

"C'mon, it's not completely my fault! Don't frame your older brother!" Kankuro protested.

"Yes, it's 100% your fault, brother." Gaara remarked. Kankuro looked away grumpily. Gaara just sighed.

Just then, the door slid open, there stood Naruto, panting and sweating, completely exhausted. He looked around. The teacher just left. Since there was no teacher in sight, Naruto thought that he made it in time for school.

"Alright! I made it just in time!" Naruto cheered.

"Yeah, just in time for the next subject. Good work Naruto!" Choji said sarcastically.

Everyone laughed and Naruto was completely embarrassed. He quickly and quietly ran to his seat.

"Quite a dramatic entrance, won't you agree, Naruto?" Sai teased.

"Yeah, that was priceless!" Kankuro laughed.

"Just shut up!" Naruto pouted. He was all red. Everyone kept on laughing.

They were having so much fun that they didn't notice Hinata in front of the whole class. She was trying to quiet down the class but no one seems to listen. It seems that she has something important to say.

"Everyone, shut up and listen!" Sakura exclaimed. Everyone stopped talking or laughing and looked at her.

"Hinata has something to say so everyone better listen to her or else!" said Temari. "Go ahead, Hinata."

"Uhm…okay. Thank you!" Hinata was playing with her fingers, obviously shy. "Uhm, well…we all know that the school festival is only a month away, right? We just thought that, well, this year, we will have a parade representing each class…we still haven't decided on which class would cosplay as sleeping beauty, snow white, Cinderella, and other fairy tales. We would appreciate it if all of you would help out in the preparations. Thank you." Hinata immediately hid behind Sakura. She was so shy.

Everyone whispered to each other and after a few seconds, "Of course we will help out, Prez!" Naruto cheered happily.

"Yeah, we can't disappoint our dear president, can we?" Kiba smirked.

Everyone agreed that they will help out anytime. Hinata was so happy. "Thank you everyone!" Hinata smiled.

Naruto saw Kiba staring at Hinata, he felt a very faded uncomfortable feeling but he can't understand what it was. He glanced at Sakura and the uncomfortable feeling he had vanished and was replaced by his admiration for his dearest Sakura. Sakura saw him and smiled, he happily smiled back at her. He was so happy at the moment.

"Hey lover-boy, snap out of it." Neji threw a piece of crumpled paper at him.

"Ah, what?" Naruto was dazed. He opened the crumpled paper and in it was written:

_You were thinking of Sakura, weren't you?_

Naruto was red. Neji just chuckled.

"We were talking to you. Don't just daydream whenever you want." Sasuke scolded.

"Oh, yeah, sure." Naruto was back to his normal self.

Naruto and the gang were talking and laughing until the girls approached them.

"Hey guys!" Ino greeted as she hugged Sai from the back.

"Oh, hey there babe, what's up?" Sai asked as he held Ino's hands.

"Oh, nothing much. I just missed you. Good thing you're all better now." Ino hugged Sai tighter. **[A/N: Sai was sitting on the table so Ino was hugging Sai around the neck. Ino is facing Sai's back so Sai isn't facing Ino. Just to clear things up.]**

"I missed you just as much!" Sai smiled.

"Hey! Don't spread your cooties!" Choji teased while eating some snacks.

"You are just jealous Choji!" Ino laughed.

"Wow, you two look perfect together!" Tenten complimented.

"Yeah, we sure are, aren't we?" Ino smiled and Sai smiled back.

"Hi there, Sasuke!" Sakura smiled.

Sasuke ignored Sakura and looked the other way. Sakura sighed and looked down. Naruto saw the whole thing and got so mad.

"Hey, Sasuke! You idiot! When a girl talks to you, you shouldn't ignore them!" Naruto growled and glared at Sasuke. Sasuke just gave him an annoyed look.

Sakura saw this and she didn't want them to fight so she tried to calm Naruto. "Naruto, it's fine, please. It's alright."

"No Sakura, it's not fine. This jerk should learn a lesson." Naruto was still glaring at Sasuke.

"Hn. You better control your temper better, Naruto. Fine, what is it, Sakura?" Sasuke asked to calm Naruto down.

Naruto hissed but immediately calmed and sat down. Sakura was silent.

"Sakura, did you want to say something? If you have something to say, say it now before I change my mind." Sasuke asked again, he doesn't want to anger Naruto. Not because he is scared of Naruto but it will get quite messy if they fight right there and then. Besides, Naruto is his friend after all.

"Oh, well, I just wanted to tell you to…have a nice day, Sasuke." Sakura smiled.

"Yeah, you too." Sasuke resumed reading his manga. He didn't show it but he was quite shocked of Sakura's expression. He was always ignoring her and being mean to her but she just won't give up. **[A/N: He was being mean in a cool way, of course. Not in a bully kind of way.]**

Meanwhile, Naruto was jealous of his friend, Sasuke. He always gets Sakura's attention even though he is so mean to Sakura and to all the other girls. He was still happy for Sakura though. Naruto sighed. Hinata saw Naruto and approached him. He looked upset and Hinata was concerned.

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Sorry, everyone. I had a really tough two weeks so I wasn't able to update early. I had so much school activities. I hope you won't be mad at me for this.

**I hope that lots of people would like this. Please review!**


	8. I'll walk you home, Prez

**A/N: I had exams last week so I had to study hard. I hope I got high marks. Anyway, let's proceed to the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 8 - I'll walk you home, Prez

"Na-Naruto…" Hinata whispered. Naruto didn't seem to hear her.

"Uhm, Naruto…" Hinata raised her voice a bit.

"Uh, yeah?" Naruto flinched and looked at the concerned Hinata.

"Well, I was just wondering if you're okay…you look quite upset." Hinata was playing around with her fingers. **[A/N: Those who have watched Naruto, you know what I'm talking about with Hinata and her finger mannerism when talking to Naruto, but in this fanfic, she also does that when she's talking to Kiba.]**

"Oh, yeah. There's nothing wrong!" Naruto gave her a cheerful smile. "Sorry for making you worry, Prez!"

"Oh, well I'm glad you're okay now. As the student council president, I should look after everyone." Hinata looked at the ceiling.

"Yeah, you're a wonderful president!" Naruto smiled and he completely forgot about his jealousy.

"…oh…thank you, Naruto…" Hinata blushed and smiled.

Naruto gasped and then smiled back and nodded. Kiba saw them smiling and frowned a bit.

"Hey Prez? We have a student council meeting later, right?" Kiba approached them. The two looked at him.

"Yeah…" Hinata simply answered.

"Well, are you busy after the meeting is over?" Kiba asked.

"Well, no…is something the matter, Kiba?" Hinata was a bit confused.

"Oh, no…I was just wondering if you'd like me to walk you home after school, I heard that Neji will be at Sasuke's place until 7 o'clock with Sai and the others. It's dangerous if you'd walk home by yourself." Kiba had a faint blush on his face.

"Oh, big brother did mention that to me this morning, they're working on their science project." Hinata paused for a bit and then blushed. "Well, I don't want to be a bother, Kiba."

"Oh, no…it's not a bother at all. I'd be happy to escort you to your home." Kiba blushed again but luckily, no one saw it.

"Well, if you insist…thank you…" Hinata was playing with her fingers and was blushing madly.

"No problem…" Kiba smiled. Hinata smiled back.

Naruto felt it again…it's the same feeling he had before…the feeling was very familiar but no matter how hard he tried, he can't figure it out at all.

"Hinata, Kiba will bring you home later, okay?" Neji interrupted Naruto's thoughts. Naruto looked at Neji.

"Oh, Kiba already mentioned that to me…big brother." Hinata was fixing some papers probably needed for their meeting later.

"Oh, I see. Take care, okay?" Neji shifted his attention to Kiba. "And keep her safe, I'll put my trust in you" Neji glared.

"I promise to bring her home safely. So quit glaring at me, you're creeping me out." Kiba assured. Neji nodded.

"Do your best on your project, bro!" Hinata smiled. Neji smiled back.

Shino was suddenly behind Neji and everyone flinched. "Hey everyone, what's up?" Shino greeted.

"Speaking of creepy, don't just appear out of nowhere just like that." Neji sighed but it was obvious that he was surprised.

"Creepy" everyone except Hinata said in unison.

"Oh, sorry about that." Shino took out a folder.

"Oh, is that the information I asked from you?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah. This is to be used for this afternoon's meeting, am I right?" Shino handed her the folder.

"Uh, yeah. Thanks!" said Hinata.

While they were talking, Naruto was in the middle of thinking about Sakura. He sighed at the thought of her and Sasuke together. He only wants Sakura to be happy and he will support her no matter what, even if it hurts him inside. Suddenly, a faint image of Hinata popped in his mind. It brought him to reality.

"Uh, what happened?" Naruto scratched his head.

"Were you daydreaming again?" Shikamaru raised his eyebrow.

"Uh, I guess so…" Naruto gave a light chuckle.

"Alright, let's all quiet down now!" Sir Asuma ordered while entering the room. Everyone obeyed promptly.

"Alright, let's head to the gym!" Everyone cheered and headed to the gym.

* * *

The day went nicely and finally, it was time to go home.

"See you tomorrow!" Hinata waved goodbye to Naruto and the others.

"We'll be having our meeting so we'll stay here for a little while longer." Kiba waved as well.

Hinata, Neji, Shino, Kiba, Sasuke and Shikamaru went to the student council room for the meeting while leaving the others behind.

"So, what are you gonna do, Sai?" Naruto asked while putting his stuff in his bag.

"I'll wait for them. Besides, I'll be in art club when they finish." Sai smiled while hugging Ino.

"See you tomorrow babe!" Ino waved while leaving with the girls.

"Yeah, you too! I'll miss you! I'll call you tonight!" Sai waved back. Ino winked and smiled. And Sai smiled back.

"Alright then, I guess I'll head home now. See you all tomorrow!" Naruto waved goodbye and left the room.

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"Okay, we'll be heading home now!" Kiba was beside Hinata.

"Alright! Be careful on your way home!" Shino reminded.

"Take care of my cousin, okay?" Neji glared.

"You're worrying too much! She'll be safe." Kiba sighed.

"Shall we go now?" Hinata asked. Kiba nodded.

"Bye bro! Take care! Bye everyone! See you all tomorrow!" Hinata waved goodbye to the rest of the student council as she left the room.

* * *

"So…Prez, how was your day today?" Kiba asked while putting his hands in his pocket.

"Well, it was great…and how was your day?" Hinata was carrying her bag and a folder. She seems to be having trouble with her bag, it must be heavy.

"It was great as well." Kiba took her bag and smiled. "You seem to be having trouble so I'll carry it for you."

"Oh, thank you, Kiba. Sorry for being such a bother to you." Hinata looked down at the road. She had a faint blush.

"oh, it's nothing, really." Kiba glanced at Hinata and sighed, he seems to be hesitating to say something. "Uhm, Prez, this question might be out of the blue, but…well…do you have a crush on someone?"

Hinata stopped walking which made Kiba stop as well. Hinata was silent. Kiba and Naruto suddenly popped in her mind and she turned red.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Hinata." Kiba broke the silence. "It was really rude of me to ask you something that personal. I hope that you'd forgive me. I'm really sorry." Kiba bowed his head.

"Oh, Kiba, please raise your head!" Hinata was frantically waving her hands.

"I'm really sorry!" Kiba was still apologizing but he raised his head.

"Don't worry, I'm not mad at you!" Hinata was smiling.

"Are you sure that you're not mad at me?" Kiba wanted to make sure.

"Yeah, so please don't apologize anymore. I just didn't know how to react." Hinata was still smiling.

"I'm glad, I thought that you'd hate me." Kiba smiled.

"I won't do something that ridiculous." Hinata smiled back.

"Yeah…" Kiba chuckled. Hinata also chuckled.

They kept on chatting on their way and before they knew it, they were already in front of Hinata's house.

"Your house is really big. It's more like a mansion than a house." Kiba laughed.

"Hehe…really? Well, thanks Kiba. I had fun talking to you." Hinata blushed.

"I'm glad you had fun! Take care now! See you tomorrow!" Kiba waved goodbye. Hinata waved back and entered the house.

Kiba watched Hinata enter the house and he started to walk away from the Hyuuga residence. He was so happy that day that he nearly jumped with joy. "If only this day could happen everyday!" Kiba smiled with pure happiness as he started to head home.

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Well everyone, how was it? This was a KibaHina chapter. But the next chapter is NaruHina so look forward to it!

**PLEASE REVIEW or I won't update! ^_^**


	9. She's beautiful

**A/N: What's up people? I've been quite busy these days and I'm so happy to announce that I'm the top of my class for this quarter! Yay! I'm really studying my heart out and I'm so happy that lots of you liked the last chapter. I'm sure that the NaruHina fans out there would surely like this chappie! Let's proceed to Chapter 9!**

**Disclaimer: I certainly don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 9 - She's beautiful

A week had gone by after the last incident at Konoha Gakuen. The guys and the girls became really good friends compared to their Junior High days. But somehow, Naruto and Kiba have the same weird and uncomfortable feeling whenever Hinata talks to one of them. That weird feeling grew little by little over the past few days. But neither of them understood that feeling. Naruto doesn't feel it that strongly unlike Kiba.

One Saturday morning, Naruto was having a stroll at the park. There weren't many people there. He kept on walking until he saw a figure of a person - a girl. He walked slowly towards the girl to determine her identity. **[A/N: We probably all know that girl's identity, huh?]**

When he was close enough, **[A/N: He was a few meters away from her, at about 7-10 meters.]** he was stunned to see a very charming young lady. He was facing her back so he doesn't know who she is yet while she was feeding some birds.

She has a long, dark-purplish hair with a slim body figure. She was wearing a purple and white jacket which was half-zipped. Underneath it was a lavender t-shirt. She wore brown peddle jeans. She was also wearing a pair of purple and white tennis shoes.

There was a sudden gust of wind. Naruto was staring at the girl as the wind gracefully blew her hair. He didn't notice that he was already staring at her. The girl suddenly turned around and was shocked to see Naruto staring at her. The girl had a faint blush. Naruto was also shocked because the beautiful girl he was staring at was actually…Hinata!

They were both staring at each other. Hinata's pale eyes were shining and she looked absolutely gorgeous. Her pale skin shimmered in the sunlight. He can't take his eyes off her. He never realized how beautiful Hinata really was, until now.

"Na-Naruto!" Hinata called out, snapping Naruto out of his daze.

"Oh, Hinata, is there something wrong?" Naruto asked while trying to hide his blush.

"Uhm…that's what I'm about to ask you…" Hinata giggled a bit. "I'm fine…but it seems that you have something on your mind, Naruto."

"Oh, well, I'm fine…really. Sorry about that." Naruto chuckled.

"Well, that's really nice to hear…" Hinata resumed feeding the birds.

"By the way, why are you here?" Naruto watched her feed the birds.

"Oh…well, I always feed the birds here. Even before going to school." Hinata smiled.

"So, you must be really fond of animals, huh?" Naruto smiled as well when he saw Hinata smiling.

"Uhm…I guess you could say that…" Hinata giggled because the bird was tickling her palm.

"So, is there something you're gonna do after you feed the birds here?" Naruto put his hands behind his head.

"Well…there's nothing in particular…why do you ask?" she walked towards a bench near her.

"I was just wondering if you would like to come and join me for a walk…you know, a get-together thing? I want to know the student council president better…since I have nothing to do…" Naruto followed her and sat beside her.

"Uhm…well…I guess…" Hinata looked at the bird at her palm and hid her blush.

"Wonderful! So, would you like to go and check out the new café downtown? I heard that they serve delicious cakes and sweets there. My treat!" Naruto grinned.

"Uhm…sure." Hinata was about to finish feeding the birds.

* * *

Kiba was walking at the same park Naruto and Hinata were at. He always comes there every morning because he always sees Hinata there. He observes her secretly so that Hinata won't find out because she might think that he is a stalker.

He was walking around looking for Hinata's whereabouts. Then, he saw Naruto and Hinata sitting on a bench, they were talking and laughing. He quickly hid behind the trees to watch them. They were having a good time. Then, the two stood up and started to leave the park. Kiba was really curious so he decided to follow them.

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Soooo? How was it? Please review and let me know! I'll be waiting!

**Gosh! This is my shortest chapter! So uncool! Anyway, please keep on supporting me! ^_^**


	10. Parfait

**A/N: Sorry to have kept everyone waiting! We won our school's cheer dance competition! We were up against the other high school levels but we still came through it! Anyway, I'm sure you're not reading this because you're curious with my life. So, here's Chapter 10! Enjoy everyone! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I have no rights to claim Naruto…too bad…**

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Chapter 10 - Parfait

Kiba quietly followed Naruto and Hinata. After a few minutes of walking, they reached the new café Naruto mentioned earlier. Naruto and Hinata happily entered the said café while Kiba stayed outside and hid behind some bushes near the café. From his position, he can see through the café's glass window.

"Hey, it's like I'm stalking them or something like that…so I'm a stalker now, eh?" Kiba mumbled quietly to himself while trying to get a better view and still keep hidden from sight. "Man, this is so embarrassing, I hope no one sees me…" He wants to stop _stalking_ but he can't shake off his suspicions that Naruto and Hinata might be much closer to each other than before. Too close for Kiba's liking.

"Wait, are they…going out?" Kiba asked himself but in reality, he wanted the answer to be a big, NO. "But Naruto likes Sakura, not Hinata…so it can't be…"

Naruto and Hinata entered the café and sat down at the table near the window. They had a window seat and Kiba was so thankful that they chose to sit there because it was much easier to _spy _on them.

* * *

"This place is quite cozy, huh? Perfect for relaxing and having some sweets." Naruto commented as he examined the wall decors.

"Yeah, this café is lovely…indeed." Hinata agreed and looked at the menu.

"So, have you chosen anything yet?" Naruto asked while scanning his menu.

"Uhm…well…I think a chocolate parfait would be nice." Hinata smiled.

"Then, I'll have coconut parfait! I heard that parfaits here are the best!" Naruto grinned joyfully as he placed their orders.

While they were waiting for their parfaits, they had a chat about some school activities and the student councils plans for them. After a few minutes, their orders were finally served.

"Wow! They look extremely delicious!" Naruto was so enthusiastic. He took a spoonful of his coconut parfait and shoved it in his mouth. "Yum!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yes, they sure do…" Hinata smiled as she sampled the chocolate parfait before her. She looked delighted with her order.

"So, how does it taste?" Naruto eyed on Hinata's dessert which looked equally good.

"It's very tasty…don't eat it too quickly or you'll have brain freeze…" Hinata warned but she was too late as Naruto shoved another spoonful of parfait in his mouth and he ended up having brain freeze just like Hinata predicted. Hinata giggled a bit and Naruto laughed along.

* * *

"Hmmm…it seems they're having a good time…and that thing they are eating sure seems really good…" Kiba's mouth was starting to water but the fact that Naruto and Hinata are together right now made him forget about his desire to try some parfait.

"Hinata, you're so cute while eating that parfait! If only i was the one with you right now!" Kiba mumbled while feeling upset.

* * *

Hinata noticed that Naruto has been eyeing on her dessert that maybe Naruto wanted to try some. "Uhm…Naruto…would you like to try some?" Hinata offered with a faint smile.

"Really? You won't mind?" Naruto was a bit embarrassed.

"Not at all…have some…" Hinata pushed her glass closer to Naruto so he can have some.

"Alright then, if you insist!" Naruto scooped up some chocolate parfait and tried some but this time, he took Hinata's advice and ate it carefully. "Mmmm! Delicious! You have great taste in picking desserts, Hinata!" Naruto was very pleased with that dessert.

"Well, thank you…" Hinata giggled.

"Here, have some of mine, say Aaaah!" Naruto took some of his parfait and he did not realize that he was about to feed Hinata.** [A/N: It's the way couples do it when they're on a date or something…they feed each other…you know what I mean, right?]**

"Uhm…Na-Naruto, well, I can do it by myself…thanks for the trouble…" Hinata was blushing and Naruto noticed that he WAS about to feed Hinata. He blushed as well.

"Sorry, Hinata…I didn't mean to…" Naruto mumbled, still embarrassed for his actions.

"It's fine…really…" Hinata smiled but the traces of her blush was still noticeable. She took some of the coconut parfait Naruto was offering and tried some.

"This coconut parfait is very pleasant…" Hinata smiled and Naruto forgot about being embarrassed and just smiled back.

"I'm really glad you like it!" Naruto grinned.

* * *

Meanwhile, out there in the bushes is Kiba who saw the whole thing and had a little misinterpretation of what just happened.

"Naruto…are you trying to make a move on Hinata? Don't tell me that you like Hinata…Please…I don't want you to be my rival cause you're my best friend…don't betray me, pal…" Kiba muttered to himself. Traces of _jealousy_ obvious in his eyes. "I-I believe in you, Naruto!"

Even though he was really upset with the whole incident, he slowly convinced himself that Naruto likes Sakura and no one else. With that, Kiba interpreted what happened in a different manner.

"Maybe Naruto was just being nice to Hinata so that he can serve as a bridge for me Hinata to be closer to each other…yeah, maybe that's it! You're the best, pal." Kiba forced a smile and tried to think positive and ignored his earlier thoughts about Naruto and Hinata going out. But, those thoughts still seems to bother him a bit.

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"Uhmmm…Naruto, I heard that you do part-time jobs…is that true?" Hinata ate some more of her dessert.

"Oh, yeah. I work at a wine shop. Oh, speaking of which, I have another part-time job at a restaurant later" Naruto was quite proud of himself.

"Oh, wow…you must be worn out every day, huh? I mean, you have school and you have work." Hinata was quite concerned.

"Well, I guess…but still, it's really fun!" Naruto's smile was very genuine. "I get to hang-out with my friends at school and I really enjoy working. I gain valuable experience in both!"

"Really? That's very interesting." Hinata was drawn in by Naruto's smile and she can't help but smile back.

They kept on chatting until they finished their parfaits. Naruto noticed the clock and he realized that it was about time for him to leave for work.

"I'm so sorry, Hinata. But it's time for work…" Naruto was quite upset.

"It's okay…I have to leave too, I have some paperwork I need to finish this afternoon. I had so much fun today, Thank you so much, Naruto." Hinata smiled which seemed to brighten up Naruto's spirits.

"Oh, I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed yourself. Maybe next time we can do this again, and let's bring the others with us, I'm sure that they'd love this café." Naruto grinned as they walked out of the place.

"Oh, sure…that would be great!" Hinata waved shyly as Naruto started to walk away. Naruto stopped for a moment, looked at Hinata, waved back at her yelled goodbye, and started to walk again.

Hinata started to walk to the other direction and Kiba, who was still there, saw an opportunity to get closer to Hinata so he decided to follow her.

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So, did everyone like it? Please tell me! I wanna know! Please wait for the next chapter if you wanna know what happens next! Until next time! Please review everyone!


	11. Chit Chats

**A/N: Okay, now I'm really sorry! Please find in your hearts to forgive me. I was really busy with school and I was so addicted to an anime I just finished recently that I didn't have time to write the new chapter. But here it is…Please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 11 - Chit Chats

Kiba approached Hinata coolly. Hinata didn't notice Kiba's presence until Kiba called out to her.

"Hey there, Hinata." Kiba smiled while still walking towards her. "Fancy meeting you here, huh?"

Hinata was a bit startled when Kiba suddenly called out but she just returned the smile. "Oh, hi there Kiba. How are you?"

"Oh, everything's fine here, how about you?" Kiba and Hinata resumed walking side by side.

"Oh, same here." Hinata said nicely.

"Oh, by the way, was it just me, or did I see Naruto here earlier?" Kiba asked. He put his hands in his pocket.

"Well, he was with me. He and I ate some parfaits." Hinata said cheerfully but in a more shy way.

"I see…but I bet he had to go to work today, huh? He's always so busy." Kiba looked up at the sky.

"Yeah, he's so hardworking…" Hinata had a little blush on her face.

"That's right, but you're hardworking yourself, you know." Kiba smirked at Hinata which made Hinata blush a bit harder.

"Oh…is that so? Thank you…Kiba." Hinata looked down to hide her blush.

"So, where are you heading now? Are you busy?" Kiba asked. He chuckled a bit when he saw Hinata's reaction from the compliment he just gave her.

"Well, later this afternoon, I'll go to the school to finish some paper works needed for the upcoming school festival. But I'm not really busy right now." Hinata was back to her normal self.

"Oh, yeah…I nearly forgot about the school festival next month." Kiba joked. Hinata looked at him as if asking 'What? How can you forget that? You're part of the student council!'. But Kiba just chuckled and said, "I was just kidding Prez. No need to worry. I'll help you out later with the paper works but in the meantime, if you don't mind, why don't we…" Kiba wasn't sure whether to tell or not but he just decided to speak up. "…walk around for a while, you know…hang-out or something. But if you don't want to, it's fine." Kiba gave a nervous laugh.

"Oh, thanks Kiba…I'd appreciate your help. And please, I don't mind walking around for a while…that was my plan earlier after all." Hinata gave him a very comforting smile.

"Really? That's great." Kiba had a large grin on his face.

So the two of them walked around for a while and they ate some cotton candy on the way. They were talking and laughing. They had so much fun but it was already lunch time and Hinata had to go home.

"Thanks Kiba! I had so much fun this morning." Hinata waved as she opened the gate of their house.

"No problem Prez, it was my pleasure. See you later this afternoon at school!" Kiba waved back and started to walk away from the house.

"Okay! See you later then!" And with that, Hinata entered their mansion.

Kiba just watched Hinata as she closed the gate and disappeared from his sight. Kiba was walking with a cute grin on his face.

After they had their lunches, Kiba and Hinata went to school. Nobody else was there but the school's janitress who was an old woman and the school's gardener, the janitress' husband. That old couple is very kind.

"So, these are all the paper works? There's a lot…" Kiba asked as he stared at the pile of papers before him.

"Yes, there's so much cause the sports clubs also submitted their papers and we have to read them one by one." Hinata sighed as she started to read some papers.

"I see, then let's do our best and finish them all!" Kiba cheered but truthfully, he was a bit disappointed because there were so much things to be done, but on the other hand, he was happy cause he can spend a bit more time with Hinata.

The two started reading and sorting the papers according to priority and other categories. It was already around 6 pm when they finished. They were both exhausted and so worn out.

"Finally! We're finished!" Kiba stretched his arms.

"I'm sorry to drag you to all this trouble." Hinata was fixing her stuff and was getting ready to go home.

"Oh, no need to apologize, I'm part of the student council too, so it's also my responsibility to do these things. I can't just leave everything to the President or she'll be so tired." Kiba smiled. Hinata smiled back.

"Okay, I'll walk you home since it's already getting dark." Kiba suggested while fixing his stuff as well.

"Oh, I'll be fine. I already bothered you so much today that I don't want to abuse your kindness any longer." Hinata simply replied. She was already finished packing her things and is ready to go.

"Oh, you weren't bothering me and my conscience won't be able to take it if you got hurt because I didn't bring you home myself." Kiba insisted. He was also ready to leave.

"Alright. Thanks Kiba." Hinata smiled as a sign of thanks. Kiba just smiled back.

They were already at the gate of the Hyuuga residence after quite some time walking.

"Thanks again Kiba! I won't forget this!" Hinata said. Kiba just chuckled and they both waved their hands and said goodbye to each other. Kiba had this really awesome smile on his face which made him look really cool.

* * *

Kiba went to pick up Naruto at the place he's working at. It was a 15 minute walk from Hinata's house to the restaurant where Naruto was working. Kiba arrived there and saw that Naruto was already getting ready to leave.

"Oh, hey there pal! Whatcha' doin' here?" Naruto exclaimed the moment he saw his best friend.

"I just came to pick you up, and it looks like you're ready to leave." Kiba smirked.

"Yeah…let's go to Ichiraku's ramen stand!" Naruto said excitedly just like a kid. He started to walk out of his workplace.

"Alright, but it's your treat this time, if I recall, it's your payday in that restaurant today, right?" Kiba followed Naruto as they headed to Ichiraku's.

"Fine…" Naruto pretended to sound depressed but Kiba just laughed at him and they laughed together. They really look stupid laughing at nothing while walking on the streets.

"Mister, I bowl with pork toppings please!" Naruto ordered the moment they reached their destination.

"I'll have one with beef on top, please!" Kiba also ordered. He sounded as enthusiastic as Naruto, maybe because he was really hungry.

"So, how was your day?" Naruto asked while waiting for his ramen.

"Oh, it was fun…yeah" Kiba smiled at nothing.

"Ooohhh? Why is that? What happened, huh?" Naruto was very curious and was pinching Kiba's face.

"Alright, I'll speak up so cut that out, alright?" Kiba was annoyed for a bit then he was back to his happy self. "I had a stroll around town this morning and I did paper works in the afternoon."

"Eh? What's fun in doing that? That's just your normal activities." Naruto pouted, he wants more information from his buddy.

"Unless when you're with a certain someone…" Kiba laughed.

"Ooohhh…you were with her…" Naruto smiled.

"Here's your ramen boys! Enjoy!" said the mister while giving the ramen of his two faithful customers.

"Thanks mister!" Naruto and Kiba said in unison as they smiled at their oh-so-delicious-looking ramen.

As the two hungry boys devoured their ramen, they still had enough time to talk to each other about the things they did today.

They're the best of friends. Even among their other friends, they are really the closest friends. Just like Sasuke, Neji and Sai; Shikamaru and Choji; Gaara and Kankuro since they're siblings; and of course, the girls Sakura, Ino, Tenten, Temari and Hinata.

Kiba and Naruto have always told each other their secrets. They were childhood friends and they've already had countless arguments but they are still the closest. Kiba knows Naruto's crush on Sakura, because Naruto told him that when they were still in junior high and also because Naruto is so obvious in his actions and words. Kiba also told Naruto his crush. And his crush is none other than the beautiful, smart, kind, honest, hardworking and shy Hinata Hyuuga.

Kiba asked Naruto about the things that happened earlier that morning between him and Hinata. Naruto told him that it was just a simple act of kindness towards Hinata and nothing more. Kiba understood that and disregarded his thoughts of suspicion and jealousy. On the other hand, Naruto asked Kiba for more information on his 'one-sided date' with his crush. But while Kiba was telling his story, Naruto can't explain why his heart is feeling so sad at that moment. He didn't show it and just listened to his best friend even if he was hurt inside but he can't determine why.

"So, you and Hinata weren't dating?" Kiba pretended to feel jealous.

"Oh, c'mon pal! You think I'd steal her from you? I'm not that bad…besides, I already have Sakura…" And with that, Naruto got a little embarrassed.

"Haha, I was just kidding so don't worry pal, I believe in you and I trust you." Kiba laughed while rubbing his now full stomach because while they were talking he was able to finish 5 bowls of ramen while Naruto finished 7 bowls.

"Well, speaking of which, the school festival is just one month away and we'll be super busy soon. I better brace myself or I'll be in a heap of trouble." Kiba laughed nervously like he was scared of the thought.

"Oh, yeah…it's your first time in the student council so it's your first time doing council things for the school festival. Man, high school life is fun and exciting on a whole new level!" Naruto sounded so happy while he was paying their food bills.

"Yeah, I guess so…you're really so positive! Only thinking of the good within the bad." Kiba sighed as he stood up, ready to leave.

"Hehe, I guess." Naruto followed Kiba's lead after paying.

"Hey, you still have lots of work this month, right? It can't be helped if you can't assist us and the other students in the school festival preparations." Kiba looked up at the stars.

"Yeah, but I'll still help out in any way I can! I promised to help out and I don't break my promises, believe it!" Naruto waved his hand around like a little kid. Kiba just chuckled at his childish friend.

"Yeah, I believe you. But hey, we don't want to trouble you, we all know your situation so you really don't have to do it. We already have plenty of help from the other students so just focus on your work, alright?" Kiba insisted, he's concerned with his friend's wellbeing.

"No! I'll help out no matter what, and you can't do anything to stop me!" Naruto insisted as well and he stuck his tongue out at Kiba.

"Fine, I can't win against you when your resolve is this strong…but if you get sick, don't blame me." Kiba shook his head as a sign of defeat.

"Yeah, I got ya." Naruto gave a cute grin.

The two of them walked home, having silly grins on their faces after they shared some more silly events they experienced that day. They were, no doubt about it, the best of friends…

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Well? How was it? This chapter is longer compared to the previous chapters for this is compensation cause I wasn't able to update for a very long time.

**I hope you liked it, guys! Read and Review! Until next time! Keep on supporting! ^_^**


	12. The chosen ones

**A/N: Hello everyone! I made this chapter in advance, just in case I won't be able to update for a while so you guys can have the latest chapter! I really care about my readers cause you people are my inspiration. Alright, let's get on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto so I'm really disappointed.**

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Chapter 12 - The chosen ones

It was an early Monday morning which just meant one thing, SCHOOL. And in Konoha high school, the gang is in the middle of a discussion while waiting for their next teacher.

"He's late again, as usual." Shikamaru sighed as he placed his chin on his left arm with a very lazy expression.

"You're still not used to it yet? I mean, we all know that he works part-time in various places all the time so let's cut him some slack." Kiba retorted, trying to reason for his best friend.

"Yeah, we all know that but he's ALWAYS late…he should try going to school early for a change, you know?" Lee butted in.

"I agree, homeroom's already over and he's still not here. It's as if he's not planning to go to school at all today." Choji added while munching on his barbeque flavored potato chips.

"Well, yeah. But I know he'll come. This already happened before and he still went to school nonetheless." Kiba insisted.

And at that exact moment, the classroom doors slid open, revealing an exhausted Naruto. He walked to his seat and sighed as he placed his stuff on his desk.

"Yow! Good thing you didn't scream something embarrassing like 'Yippee! I'm not late for school' or 'I'm just on time'." Neji looked sarcastically at Naruto. Naruto glared at him and just sighed.

"Hey, you okay there?" asked Sai.

"Yeah, just tired but I'm fine." Naruto gave Sai a big goofy grin. Sai smiled like he was relieved.

"That's great!" a voice from behind Naruto said which surprised him. He looked at the person and saw a smiling Sakura.

"Oh, hey there Sakura!" Naruto tried to sound energetic but that wasn't really convincing.

"Hey, good thing you didn't get sick cause we'd be so worried about you." Sakura giggled, Naruto had a really faint blush on his cheeks.

"Oh, yeah." Naruto chuckled.

"Oh, hey Sasuke! Good morning!" Sakura saw Sasuke and greeted him. She was probably unable to greet him earlier this morning because his fan girls were probably swarming all over him.

"Hn." was Sasuke's only reply and worse is, he didn't even look at Sakura. He just continued on reading his manga.

"Hey jerk! Would ya quit the attitude already? It's irritating!" said a very agitated Naruto.

"What's your problem, idiot?" Sasuke glared at Naruto.

"What's my problem? You're my problem, moron! You and your stupid attitude!" Naruto glared back at Sasuke. They both started a glaring contest.

"Whatever. I don't have time to deal with a stupid idiot like you." Sasuke resumed reading.

"Why you bastard!" Naruto was about to punch Sasuke when he was stopped by Kiba and Shikamaru. Sakura looked upset and walked out of the scene. Naruto wanted to chase after her and apologize but he thought that it's not the right time yet.

"Look at what you've done!" Naruto focused on Sasuke again. Kiba and Shikamaru let go of his arms seeing that Naruto has calmed down a little.

"Don't blame me, moron. Everything's your fault. You get angry at every single thing when _that girl_ talks to me." Sasuke hissed but still kept his attention on his book.

"What! And _that girl_ has a name, stupid! Her name is Sakura and you should respect her!" Naruto retorted.

"Hn. Whatever." Sasuke was so tired of arguing with Naruto every single time this kind of event happens.

"Darn you!" Naruto was so mad he had to punch a wall just to calm down. Good thing no one heard it and the wall didn't crack.

But as much as he'd hate to admit it, it was partly his fault and he knows it. Naruto is blaming himself for being so mad at Sasuke that they had to argue over it, in front of Sakura. Well, Sasuke doesn't really care about it, at least in Naruto's point of view. But since Naruto really really likes Sakura, he can't help it but get angry when Sasuke treats her like that.

"Alright everyone, take your seats and we'll start our classes!" Sir Azuma ordered as he entered the now quiet room.

Classes proceeded smoothly. Although there's still a tiny bit of tension between the two guys. It was now the last subject before lunch time and their teacher hasn't shown up yet.

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"Hey there guys!" Ino walked to the guys.

"Oh, hey." Sai hugged Ino as if they hadn't seen each other in days.

"Do you two really have to do this every time you meet? Don't you get tired of doing that all the time?" Tenten laughed. She was also heading towards the guys' direction along with the other girls.

"Awww…Tenten is jealous." Ino stuck her tongue out at Tenten.

"No way." Tenten also stuck her tongue out at Ino.

"You girls are so childish." Neji smirked which caught Tenten's attention.

"Oh, hey Neji." Tenten smiled. Neji shook his head but the smirk is still on his face.

"The teacher is so late. He's already 10 minutes late." Kiba sighed.

"Yeah, it's such a drag." said Shikamaru while putting a book over his face and putting his feet on his desk.

"Hey Shikamaru! Sit properly would ya?" Temari ordered while taking the book off Shikamaru's face. He just looked at her and did what she said. But you can hear him sigh and murmur a quiet 'such a drag'.

"Oh hey, where's Sakura and Hinata?" Kiba asked. And when the name Sakura was mentioned, Naruto flinched, remembering the bad event that happened earlier between him, her and Sasuke.

"Sakura is helping Hinata and they're doing something about the school festival and stuff like that." Tenten explained.

"Do you think she's mad at me?" Naruto mumbled.

"Sakura won't stay mad for long. She's not the type who holds grudges against people when she knows that they didn't mean it." Ino comforted the worried Naruto. Naruto sighed.

"Uhmm…excuse me everyone!" Hinata called out to the class. She was standing in front of the blackboard with Sakura on her side.

All of the students immediately paid attention. All of them respects Hinata.

"Well, we would like to discuss some matters with you. Our teachers are in the middle of a meeting right now and we were granted permission to use this time for our preparations in the upcoming school festival." Sakura said professionally. Some students said something like 'whoa' or 'wow'.

"Well, just like what Sakura said, we would like to discuss some matters with you." Hinata scanned through some papers she was holding.

And so the class had a meeting about the event they'd hold next month. They were talking about some props, costumes, food, decorations, activities and other things associated with the school festival.

"And so now, to finish our meeting, we'll have an election to see who'll play what role. Our class will be cosplaying Romeo and Juliet as our main roles and also the anime Special A." Sakura stated while going through some papers.

"So, let's begin voting." Hinata said and so they gave their votes.

After their election, Hinata was chosen to be Juliet and Kiba was Romeo. Naruto felt a throbbing pain in his chest but he shook the feeling off. He still has a lot of other matters to worry about.

Sasuke was voted as Kei Takishima, Sakura as Hikari Hanazono, Neji as Yahiro Saiga, Tenten as Megumi Yamamoto, Sai as Jun Yamamoto, Ino as Sakura Ushikubo, Shikamaru as Tadashi Karino, Temari as Akira Toudou and Naruto as Ryuu Tsujin. **[A/N: If you don't know the pairings of the anime Special A, here they are: Kei x Hikari, Yahiro x Megumi, Jun x Sakura, Tadashi x Akira and Ryuu is a Lone Wolf. ^_^ Special A is an awesome anime, you know!]**

The other classmates who weren't chosen to be in the main roles are going to wear dresses and suits or tuxedos. Because the theme is royalty and nobility.

Even the main characters (Naruto, Hinata, Kiba, Shikamaru, Sasuke, Sakura, Ino, Sai, Tenten, Temari, Neji) are going to wear dresses even if they're playing roles. Choji, Lee, Shino, Gaara and Kankuro will do the same.

Naruto just sighed, he's not so happy with his role. Suddenly, someone approached him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"If you think I'm mad at you, please don't think that way." Sakura said. She was smiling at him. Naruto just stared at her with confusion.

"Don't give me that look. I'm not mad at you or at Sasuke. But please, avoid fighting, okay? Or I'll be really mad and you won't want that, would you?" Sakura's voice was gentle and Naruto could listen to it all day long. Naruto smiled at her and grinned.

"I will, I promise!" Naruto said cheerfully. Sakura smiled back and went to the girls.

Naruto was so happy again. He started imagining Sakura in a dress and that would make her look 5x prettier. He started daydreaming, not caring about what's happening around him.

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So what do you think? This is a neat chapter huh? I'll have some more Naruhina in the next chapters but I hope you liked this! I might not be able to update soon so I'm apologizing early.

**Oh, when you guys review my chapter, would you kindly tell me what you liked and not liked in this chapter? I still have no fixed ending for this and I want to hear or in this case, read your opinions about my story. Not just a simple 'Keep Going.' or 'Keep Updating.' If you don't mind, that is…I'm just suggesting so please don't get mad. Thanks!**

**Please review and Please keep on supporting this fanfic! ^_^**


	13. Cookies

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A/N: Hey, did you all miss me? Kidding! So, do you like the pairings I made? I had lots of other animes in mind for the cosplay thingy but I thought that Special A would be the best…So, moving on to the next chapter!

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Chapter 13 - Cookies

"Hey lover boy, snap out of it, would ya?" Sasuke's voice made Naruto's eyes go wide open in an instant.

"What do you want?" Naruto glared at him coldly.

"It's lunch time idiot. Let's grab something to eat." Sasuke started to walk away.

"Hmph…" Naruto followed him. He was wondering why time passed so quickly. He remembered that there's still an hour left before lunch time. Maybe it's because he's been daydreaming all this time that he didn't notice that it's already time.

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The guys went to the rooftop of the school building after getting some of their lunch. They all like to eat at the rooftop. It's quiet there and the best part is, they have the whole place to themselves. No one bothers going up there because Sasuke and Neji _ordered_ that the rooftop is restricted to other students _specially girls_.

"The school festival sounds so exciting!" Naruto beamed, nearly spilling his food.

"Yeah. I really think that the students would be enjoying this event." Kiba drank some juice.

"Yeah, but we have pairings. It's so annoying." Shikamaru mentioned and the guys except for Kiba wilted.

"Urgh…do you have to remind us that?" Neji sighed and ate a spoonful of food.

"Yeah, but it's not like you hate it, right? I mean, those girls really like you and they're our friends." Choji mumbled and ate a slice of his pork barbeque lunch. He suddenly felt glares pointed directly at him.

"What? I'm just saying…" Choji continued on eating and the glares calmed down.

It was silent for a few minutes. The guys were probably thinking about some things about what Choji said.

"Hey, there's no dessert? Geez…" Naruto complained. The guys seemed to agree.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming from the stairs. Since the doors to the stairs are closed, they can only hear the sound faintly. And then, the door opened.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke stared at their unexpected visitors.

"Don't be so mean! We just wanted to give you something." Ino walked forward along with the Hinata, Sakura, Tenten and Temari. Yup, the girls were their visitors.

"What is it now?" Sasuke still glared at them. He's not so happy about people breaking _his_ rules.

"We thought that you'd like some dessert. Since there were none in the canteen." Ino hugged Sai.

"Oh, how sweet of all of you!" Naruto smiled, hoping that Sakura had some for him.

"Well we baked them ourselves, so don't complain about them or else…" Ino showed them her fist.

"Alright, don't worry." Kiba chuckled.

"Here you go! I hope you like it babe!" Ino smiled cutely while handing Sai a small pouch filled with cookies. **[A/N: The pouch was as big as a closed fist.]**

"Smells good. Thanks babe!" Sai kissed Ino's forehead and Ino blushed.

"Here, Shikamaru. I hope you like them. They're shaped like clouds cause I know you really like clouds a lot." Temari gave a very heartwarming smile while giving Shikamaru his cookies.

"Thanks." Shikamaru opened it and bit a cookie. Temari looked at him, waiting for a reaction. "Mmm, good." Shikamaru mumbled, but the truth is, he really liked the cookie. Temari just smiled at him.

"Hey Neji? Well, I baked these for you so, I was wondering if you'd please accept them?" Tenten bowed down, her hands are pointing towards Neji with the cookie pouch.

"Thanks." Neji reached for the pouch and Tenten watched as Neji opened the pouch and ate a cookie.

"Thanks, Tenten. It's very delicious. Just the way I like it." Neji's voice sounded kind. Tenten blushed and skipped away to her friends.

"Uhm, Sasuke?" Sasuke looked up at Sakura.

"Hmmm?" Sasuke's tone sounded nicer which made Sakura much more confident.

"I want you to please take this." She held out the cookie pouch and Sasuke stared at it. "I baked them myself so, well, I hope you'll like them!"

"Okay. I'll have some." Sasuke took it and bit a cookie. Sakura waited for a reply but Sasuke was silent for a minute.

"Uhm, Sasuke? Did you like it?" Sakura spoke softly.

"Yeah, the best cookies I ever had." Sasuke looked at her and smiled. Sakura was blushing madly and gave her thanks and joined Tenten.

Naruto was just silently watching. He was sad that Sakura didn't make any for him. When suddenly…

"Uhm, hey, are you alright?" A very familiar voice asked. Naruto looked up and saw where the voice came from.

"Hey, I made some cookies so, I'd like you to try them." Hinata smiled. He gave Naruto some cookies.

"Uh, thanks. I didn't expect to receive any." Naruto was confused.

"This is my thanks for the parfait." Hinata smiled. "I hope you like them." Naruto watched as Hinata walk away.

He opened the pouch and ate a cookie. It was very delicious. He was so happy. Really happy but he doesn't know why.

"Kiba, here, I baked some for you too." Hinata handed Kiba some cookies as well.

"Oh, thanks Hinata." Kiba smiled.

"This is my thanks to you for the time when you helped me with those paper works and for bringing me home. Thanks Kiba." Hinata smiled back.

"How about us? Won't we get any?" Choji complained.

"I made some for you guys too." Hinata took out a pouch much bigger than the others. **[A/N: The pouch Hinata had for the others was 5 times bigger than the pouch she had for Naruto and Kiba.]**

"Well, I made this for everyone, so you'll have to share, okay?" Hinata smiled and then she left with her friends.

"Hinata is so nice!" Lee munched on some cookies.

"Yeah, she is…" Kiba agreed.

Naruto stared at the sky and he can't help it, he smiled. Naruto was thinking about how kind Hinata is.

After a couple more minutes, the bell rang and it's time for class…

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I hope you liked it!

**Actually, I'm planning to write another fan fiction. The story would be so sad and romantic at the same time, but I'm not sure if you'd read it so I'm having second thoughts.**

**Please Review! And Please, review all the way, I mean, some people add my story to their favorites or put it on alert and some add me to their favorite authors list or author alert list but they don't review! I get upset with that because they don't tell me what their thoughts about my story are… *sobs***

**So please, REVIEW? Oh, pretty please? ^_^**

**Thanks for your cooperation, and I'll do my very best to excite you and update quicker…**


	14. The bet and the topic

**A/N: I'm sorry guys, I had some major schoolwork to do and I had to prioritize, but here it is! I hope you'll like this chappie!**

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 14 - The bet and the topic

It was yet another day of Naruto hopelessly trying to get to school on time. He grabbed a cookie from the table and rushed off like he was being chased by dogs.

Naruto promised to help out in the preparations but his friends told him to just focus on his work but it's Naruto and Naruto will always be Naruto so he insisted that he would help even just a little and his friends were persuaded by his determination.

After a few minutes of running, Naruto reached his classroom, but instead of barging in like an angry mob, he peeked at the windows to check if the teacher is inside, and to his dismay, Sir Iruka was inside, looking at some papers.

Naruto crawled to the back door of the room **[A/N: In some Japanese schools, the classrooms have two sliding doors, right? The same is with Konoha High School's classrooms.]**. He carefully slid the door open, slowly and silently. He opened the door at just the right width for him to pass through. Just when he was getting closer to his seat, he heard Sir Iruka call him.

"Naruto, will you stand up? Quit crawling, you'll get your uniform dirty." Sir Iruka put down his papers.

"Geez, I really can't get past you…" Naruto stood up. His classmates chuckled and the girls giggled because he got caught again.

"Of course, now get to your seat before I give you detention." Sir Iruka smiled.

"Hmph…." Naruto grumbled and sat down. Iruka just shook his head and got back to his papers.

"Hey, you should've waited for Sir Iruka to leave instead of entering just like that." Kiba, who sits beside Naruto whispered to him.

"Yeah, but I'd be in more trouble if I didn't attend homeroom again." Naruto whispered back.

"True…" Kiba agreed.

"Alright, goodbye class." Sir Iruka stood up. "Oh, and one more thing, Naruto Uzumaki, I'd like to talk to you later, before lunch time." And with that he left the room.

"Geez, Sir Iruka won't let me off easily…" Naruto sighed.

"It was your fault, always being late and all." Shikamaru emphasized the word _always_.

"Alright, I get it…I'll do something about it, I guess…" Naruto rolled his eyes.

"I hardly believe that. You? Waking up early? Impossible." Sasuke said sarcastically.

"So you want to bet on it?" Naruto dared.

"Sure, but you have to get to school on time for three days in a row. If you can't do that, you'll have to treat me and all our friends to some ramen." Sasuke was having fun playing around with Naruto.

"What! All of them? That's…" Naruto started counting with his fingers.

"10. Namely: Me, Neji, Sai, Kiba, Shikamaru, Gaara, Lee, Kankuro, Choji and Shino. I don't like girls to tag along. Okay, so you'll treat us on Friday." Sasuke interrupted Naruto's thoughts.

"Hey, why are you making plans when the bet hasn't started yet! And Choji will probably eat 7 bowls of ramen at minimum! Man, you are such a pain in the butt!" Naruto grumbled.

"That's not my problem." Sasuke's smirk grew.

"Hmph! If I win, You will treat me and our friends, including the girls to some ramen! What do you say about that?" This time, it was Naruto who was smirking.

Sasuke's smirk faded. He thought about it for a few seconds.

"Are you in, or not? Don't tell me that you are chickening on our bet." Naruto's smirk grew bigger.

"Fine, it's a deal." Sasuke also smirked. "I have nothing to lose, anyway."

"Oh, it's your I'm-so-rich attitude again." Naruto pouted.

"Yeah, and what about it? I heard that you have some money yourself. You've been saving your salaries all this time so it's no wonder if you've got loads of money in your bank account." Sasuke pointed out.

"Yeah, so what? I still don't want to spend my money, which I've worked hard for." Naruto crossed his arms.

"Well, whatever, a deal's a deal. And I will be the winner." Sasuke teased.

"No way!" Naruto retorted.

While the two were arguing whether who will win their bet, their friends were just watching them, chuckling or laughing at some point. It is true that Naruto has some savings with him. Even though his savings can sustain him for a whole year, he still insists on working because he doesn't want to be broke. And he is used to working that he'll miss the feeling and his co-workers are very nice fellows. His friends admire his industriousness.

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After a few minutes of friendly bickering between Sasuke and Naruto, Miss Kurenai opened the door and the class was quiet. She put down her stuff and greeted the students. The students greeted her back.

"Okay, class. Today, we'll talk about something that, I believe, most of you have encountered already." Miss Kurenai started. The class just looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

"Our topic for today is, what we call 'puppy love'". We won't be having a lesson about "real love" yet. But I'm sure that we'll be able to encounter it soon." Miss Kurenai smiled as the students reacted to the topic. Some were blushing, others were giggling and some were embarrassed.

"I believe that most of you here, specially girls, have some crushes, am I right?" Some girls were really blushing now. The boys doesn't seem to care much, but some of them are reacting slightly, including Naruto.

"I've been through that phase already, so it's okay to open up to me, I know how you all feel about this topic. And boys, I know that you have some feelings for some of the girls here, you don't have to hide it." Miss Kurenai giggled when most of the boys shifted their position, as if feeling uncomfortable with what their teacher just said. Some girls giggled as well. But to the dismay of others, Sasuke, Neji, Gaara, Shikamaru, Shino, and a few boys didn't react at all. Maybe they don't have any 'crushes', or maybe, they are just good at hiding their feelings? No one else knows but themselves.

"Hmmm, how about you Naruto? Do you have someone in mind?" Miss Kurenai called out.

"Uhm…well…I…" Naruto didn't know what to say. He was too embarrassed to say anything. He just gave a nod. The teacher giggled.

"Alright, you don't have to tell me the name of the person." Miss Kurenai smiled. "Hmm…how about you, Kiba?"

"Oh, well, I…yeah." Kiba was able to answer properly, unlike Naruto.

"And you, Sasuke. Anyone in mind?" Miss Kurenai was still smiling.

"…" Silence. Most of the girls were waiting for his answer. "None." And with that, the girls waiting nearly fainted.

"Are you sure, Sasuke?" Miss Kurenai is trying to urge Sasuke into admitting his feelings.

"Fine, I have no one in mind yet. Maybe next time. Happy now, miss Kurenai?" Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Good enough. How about…oh, Hinata!" Miss Kurenai's smile returned.

"Oh, uhm…I'm not really sure yet, miss Kurenai. I don't think I have time for these things. But…well, I'll tell you if I have somebody in mind." Hinata was playing with her fingers again, the thing she does when she's nervous, embarrassed or shy.

"Alright." Miss Kurenai and the class continued until everyone was called. Time passed quickly and it was already lunch time.

"Hey guys, go ahead and I'll meet you at the rooftop. I still have to talk to Sir Iruka." Naruto said to his friends.

"Alright, but be careful, I'm sure that Sir Iruka won't let you off the hook so easily." Kiba teased.

"Yeah, I know. Okay, better get going, or else Sir Iruka will get mad. Later!" Naruto ran off and headed to the faculty room. His friends waved and walked toward the cafeteria.

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Short much? I was in a hurry to finish this but I'll make sure that the next chapter would be much enjoyable.

**Hope you enjoyed reading this! Please read and review! Thanks for all the support you've been giving me all this time! ^_^**


	15. Festival Plans

**A/N: I'm really sorry everyone! I don't know how to atone for my sin. I was really really busy with school these past few weeks. We had exams, I had quiz bee, Christmas preparations, Dance rehearsals, etc. I'm so exhausted, but I finally found some time to continue my fic. I'm so sorry, I really am. I hope you guys understand. Please enjoy this chapter! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 15 - Festival Plans

Naruto headed to the faculty room to talk to Sir Iruka. He slowly opened the door and saw him sitting at his desk. Naruto breathed deeply and went to Sir Iruka.

"Uhm, Sir Iruka, I'm here. What did you want to talk about?" Naruto lightly leaned on the table.

"Naruto, I think that you should, well…skip the school festival, or at least leave the preparations to your classmates." Sir Iruka said hesitantly while fixing his documents.

"But sir! I promised Hinata and my friends that I'd help them out! I never break my promises!" Naruto yelled which made the other people in the room look at him.

"Keep your voice down Naruto." Naruto looked ashamed. "I know you don't like breaking promises, but if you insist on doing it, your grades would go down, and you don't have the best grades as it is. More importantly, you will strain your body, I'm concerned about your well-being." Iruka looked worried.

"But I can handle it! I'm strong and healthy. I'm just gonna help with the props and other stuff, it's not a big deal." Naruto insisted.

"I know, but you also have work. I'm worried that your body might not take it." Sir Iruka pointed out.

"I'll be fine. Please, I can take care of myself. Besides, my friends and everyone there will help me." Naruto almost looked like he was pleading.

Sir Iruka thought about it for a moment. "Fine, but don't be too hard on yourself. If something bad happens to you, I'll remove you from the festival. Understood?" Sir Iruka finally gave up.

"Yes sir!" Naruto gave him a large grin. "I'll be as healthy as possible."

"Good to hear, now go have some lunch." Sir Iruka smiled and focused his attention on his paperwork.

Naruto left the room and went to the cafeteria. He searched the place but he didn't see Sasuke and the others which meant that they were already at the rooftop. He went to the counter and got some beef ramen for his lunch and some sweets for dessert. With that he went to the rooftop where his friends were.

"Hey, what took you so long?" Kiba asked, looking at Naruto.

"Sir Iruka told me that I shouldn't participate in the school festival." Naruto sat down.

"So what did you say?" Kiba was worried.

"I bet he kept on saying that he could handle it." Sasuke leaned on the wall.

"Yeah, but Sir Iruka said that if something bad happens to me because of the preparations for the festival, he'll remove me." Naruto's tone was sad.

"But we're here, so you don't have to worry about it." Sai encouraged.

"Yeah, I guess so." Naruto gave his friends a grin.

"Now start eating your lunch, or I'll eat it for you." Choji teased. Naruto laughed and began eating.

They were enjoying themselves and the rooftop was filled with laughter and some minor arguments.

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Class passed by quickly and it was already time to go home. But Naruto and his classmates still needs to make props and costumes for the festival which was only a few weeks away.

"Okay, we will do the costumes for the parade so you guys do the props, okay?" Sakura said while looking at her notebook.

"Alright, but are we gonna have a food stand or something else for the festival?" Shikamaru inquired.

"Yes, we were thinking of having a café here in the room, but we're still open for suggestions. If everyone votes for the café, then that's what we'll be doing this year." Ino explained.

"Hmm, a café sounds nice. What kind of café are you thinking of? A maid café? Or maybe some kind of cosplay café." asked Naruto.

"I'm not too sure about the maid café, but the cosplay café sounds interesting. Besides, in a maid café, only the girls can participate. And I heard that the other class is going to have a maid café." Sakura pondered.

"Then let's have an election. If anyone here wants a different class activity for the festival, please suggest it now." Hinata said politely.

Everyone in their class seems to like the idea of a café, so no one gave a suggestion for a different activity.

"Okay, please raise your hand if you are in favor of a cosplay themed café." said Kiba. The majority of their classmates prefer a cosplay café better.

"So a cosplay café it is." Sakura started writing it in her notebook. "We need to be creative in order to make this a success. Please cooperate with us, everyone!" Sakura gave them a cute smile. Some boys and girls had light blushes on their face.

"We will only make the costumes for the parade, and the costumes for the café will be decided by yourselves. Your character should be unique and creative. If you need help, you can come to us." Tenten smiled.

"This will help promote our school, so let's do our best." Hinata gave a light smile.

"And I heard that there were prizes and awards." Choji mentioned.

"Yes, that's why we should give our all!" Ino cheered.

"Okay, now that everything about that is settled, let's proceed to making plans for the parade." stated Sasuke, while reading his manga.

"We only have less than a month to finish everything, so we should work quickly." Kiba added.

"Hmm, girls, take everyone's measurements. Boys, think of the materials that we are going to use and the props we are going to make." Ino ordered, and everyone did what was told.

It took around 30 minutes for the measuring and the planning.

"Well, now, we have to calculate everything. We will have to give some money in order to have enough funds. Is everyone okay with that?" Kiba asked. Everyone agreed.

"Alright, let's go home, everyone. That's all for today. See you tomorrow." Hinata thanked everyone for their cooperation and they started packing their stuff.

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"Hey, Naruto, our bet starts tomorrow. Don't chicken out." Sasuke mocked.

"Hmph! I should be the one telling you that." Naruto stuck his tongue out. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Off to work?" asked Kiba.

"Yeah, better start early, so I can go home earlier to prove to that jerk that I am punctual." Naruto grinned.

"Good luck with that." Sasuke smirked.

"Okay, see you later guys!" Ino waved and gave Sai a hug before leaving with the gals.

Naruto and his friends walked out of the school and headed to different directions.

Naruto has to work in a restaurant a couple of blocks away from his house. He began his shift early. He always attract customers because of his cheerful smile and cute face. He is also quite handsome and he is polite to the customers. It was already 10 o'clock when he finished his shift. He went home and prepared for bed.

"I'll adjust my alarm clock. Hmm, I'll make it 30 minutes earlier." Naruto winded his alarm.

He laid in his bed and turned off the lamp.

"I'm going to win our bet, Sasuke!" Naruto was so determined to win.

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So…how was it?

**Did you like it, or did you not? I was in a bit of a hurry when I made this so it might not make that much sense…**

**Please read and review. I really want to know what you think of this chapter, so PLEASE REVIEW. Thank you very much. Please keep on supporting me! ^_^**


	16. A morning walk

**A/N: Sorry for the late update. I had writer's block and I didn't want to disappoint you guys because you've been giving me nice and encouraging reviews. There's a NaruHina moment here, so I hope you like this chapter! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.****Chapter 16 - A morning walk **

Naruto slowly opened his eyes when he heard his alarm clock ringing. He looked so determined to win their bet so he made sure that he won't mess up. He turned off the alarm and stood up. After taking a 10-minute bath, he took some toast and headed for school. He looked at his watch and saw that there's still more than 30 minutes before class starts. The park was quite near the school, so Naruto decided to kill some time there. He was feeling refreshed with his new routine. After 10 minutes of walking, he finally reached the park. It only takes 5 minutes to walk from the park to the school so he decided to stay there for around 10 minutes just to be sure.

He walked for a bit. He saw a couple of joggers and only a few people there. He was approaching the center of the park when he saw a girl surrounded by birds. The rays of the morning sun made the girl look even more beautiful. She was wearing her school uniform and the uniform is from Konoha Gakuen, the same school Naruto goes to. He was stunned for a few seconds until he snapped out of his daze. He knew that girl really well. So Naruto ran to her with a cheerful face and said, "Good Morning, Hinata!".

The girl turned around gracefully, her eyes like pearls. She gave him a warm smile while saying, "Oh, Naruto. Good morning." Naruto smiled and they both sat at a nearby park bench.

Hinata suddenly looked at Naruto's face. "Naruto, are you sick? Why is your face so red?" Hinata asked worriedly. Naruto didn't notice that he was already blushing. Hinata noticed it and misunderstood.

"Oh, no, I'm sorry about that. I'm fine." Naruto hid his blush and chuckled a bit. He thought that it was very embarrassing to blush, specially in front of a girl. "So, feeding birds again, huh? You seem to be quite fond of them." Naruto eagerly changed the subject.

"Oh, yeah. But I also like other animals, not just birds. Though I like birds best." Hinata smiled, she looked so happy.

"Wow, feeding them seems to be fun." Naruto was amused.

"Yeah, it is. Do you want to try?" Hinata offered.

"Sure. That's be great." Hinata put some bird feed on Naruto's hand. Naruto took some feed and threw it in front of him, the birds instantly went to where the food was. Naruto was like a little kid. He was smiling. Hinata glanced at him and blushed because of Naruto's child-like smile. She resumed feeding the birds in order to avoid blushing any further because Naruto might see it. They both fed the birds happily.

"Uhm, why are you up so early, Naruto? This is quite unexpected." Hinata giggled and continued to feed the birds. Naruto felt that he was starting to blush again but he quickly hid it before Hinata saw it.

"Oh, that. You remember that Sasuke and I had a bet, right? I don't want to lose to him." Naruto scratched the back of his head.

"Uhm, yeah. I remember that. You really hate losing, huh?" Hinata smiled.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that. It's just that I really don't want to lose against Sasuke." Naruto looked up at the sky.

"Really? But, why Sasuke?" Hinata glanced at Naruto for a second, then continued to feed the birds.

"I'm not really sure why. It's probably because everyone looks up to him because he's one of those who has the best grades in class, he's really popular, he's really good at sports, and he has everything. While people look down on me because I'm not really good in class, I'm a bit clumsy, and people treats me as an outcast. That was probably the reason why I treat him as my rival." said Naruto. Hinata looked at him with a worried look, but Naruto just smiled.

"I'll do my best and have everyone respect me. But I'd also have to beat Sasuke. And I will definitely do it. Believe it!" Naruto gave a huge grin, and Hinata can't help it but smile back. Hinata was greatly amazed by his determination. Her face was as red as a strawberry.

"Hey, something wrong, Hinata?" Naruto asked. Hinata shook her head and looked down. They returned to feeding the birds. A few more minutes later, they both noticed the time and they agreed to go to school already, before end up getting late for class, which would make Naruto lose their bet.

"Come on, let's go together. We better hurry up, or we'll be late." Naruto suggested and Hinata agreed.

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After a couple of minutes, they reached the school and they both entered their classroom. Naruto's friends were cheering for him because he managed to go to school on time. But Kiba wasn't quite happy when he saw Naruto and Hinata come inside the classroom together. Naruto walked towards his friends and Hinata went to Sakura and the other girls.

"Hey you guys! What's up?" Naruto greeted. Kiba put his arm around Naruto's neck and ruffled his hair just like a brother does. Everyone laughed.

"Good thing you're early today." Kiba chuckled.

"I have to, cause I'm gonna win our bet!" Naruto looked at Sasuke.

"Hn. I don't think so. You still have to be early for two more days. I bet you can't pull it off." Sasuke said mockingly.

"Oh yeah? Just watch me! I'll win and you'll have to treat us all to some ramen." Naruto was acting like a child again.

"It will be you who's going to treat us." Sasuke returned the comment.

"No way. It's gonna be you!" Naruto insisted. "I'm not going to lose!"

"I won't be losing either." Sasuke was successful in annoying Naruto. Naruto and Sasuke started arguing again.

"And there they go again. Uh, what a drag." Shikamaru sighed.

"Will they ever stop arguing?" asked Choji.

"If they didn't argue, they'd miss each other." Kiba teased. But Naruto and Sasuke heard him.

"I will never miss this guy!" They both diverted their attention to Kiba and said at the same time. Then they started arguing again. Sasuke was still being cool even while arguing, but Naruto was going hyper again. He reacts with every word Sasuke says.

"They're like crazy brothers of some sort. Man, these two are nuts." Kankuro mentioned. The two "brothers" shot a glare at him and continued to argue. Kankuro sighed.

"That's the power of youth!" Lee gave a thumbs up sign.

"Sir Gai really had influenced you." Neji pretended to shiver. **[A/N: Sir Gai is Maito Gai or Might Guy in English. ^_^]**

"But you have admit, their friendship is very strong." Sai mentioned. "Their brother-like bond with each other is amazing."

"Well, perhaps. But I still think they're crazy." said Kankuro and they laughed.

"Okay. Settle down now everyone." Sir Iruka entered the room. Everyone sat on their chairs. Iruka noticed that Naruto was in the room and was quite surprised.

"Naruto, it's a good thing that you're starting to go to school early. Keep it up." Sir Iruka complimented. Naruto scratched the back of his head and gave him a goofy grin. Class proceeded quickly, and in no time at all, it was already lunch time.

"Okay, let's go have some lunch! I'm starving!" Naruto suggested. The gang **[A/N: Naruto and the guys, girls are not included…for now. ^_^]** headed to the cafeteria to have some lunch, and as usual, they're planning to eat at their favorite place at school, the rooftop.

"Hmmm…what should I pick?" Naruto pondered while looking at the different kinds of food in front of him.

"Pick faster, idiot." Sasuke murmured.

"Argh! Shut up!" Naruto glared at Sasuke and Sasuke just rolled his eyes. "Hmm…then I'm gonna have a bowl of pork ramen, a chicken sandwich, a bottle of orange juice, and…hmmm…oh! A slice of the chocolate cake for dessert." After Naruto and the guys received their lunch, they went up the rooftop.

"Time to eat!" Naruto said happily.

"Hey, isn't that a bit too much?" Sasuke asked.

"Nah. I should eat plenty because lunch is the most important meal of the day. Besides, Choji eats twice the amount I'm eating." Naruto defended.

"Idiot. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, not lunch. And don't include Choji in this." Sasuke sighed. Everyone laughed at Naruto. And Choji needs to eat more food than an average human because he's different. He just wants to eat because he enjoys doing so. But the word FAT is a taboo around Choji. Because he considers himself chubby, but not fat.

"Oh…right." Naruto chuckled. "Anyway, let's just eat."

So they ate merrily. They are all really good friends.

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And that's the end of this chapter. I hope the NaruHina fans reading this liked it! I'll make it even cheesier and fluffier next time, so please keep supporting me! ^_^

**Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW cause I'd know what you think about this chapter. It's one of my bests, so I'd really like to know. ^_^**


	17. Day Two

**A/N: Hello guys! Did you all miss me? XD Kidding! Well, I know you are all sick of my excuses but I was really busy with school these past few days and I'm lucky to even have time to write this chapter. I also want to thank the following authors for always supporting me even if I update really late:**

**K.999999999**

**Rose Tiger**

**LightSpeed Athlete24**

**TimidWolf**

**Amorous Grunty**

**And to all the others who weren't included here, I'm sorry...I just didn't have enough time to go through everyone who reviewed my story…please forgive me. But I promise, if you review this chapter, then I'd see your names and perhaps I'd write everyone in the next chapter if I had the time.**

**Anyway, thank you so much everyone for all your support! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 17 - Day Two

"Aaahhh…" said Naruto as he yawned. It was the second day of their bet. Naruto worked until midnight last night and he was so exhausted. Naruto gazed at his alarm clock and his eyes immediately widened. He hurried to the bath and took a 5-minute shower. He grabbed an apple and rushed to the school. He dashed off to school. As usual, Naruto overslept but no one can blame him, he was working really hard.

"Make it in time!" Naruto screamed to himself while running like there's no tomorrow. At the same time, he's biting large chunks from his apple. Naruto ran up the stairs, through the hallway, and into his classroom. He opened the door, panting and sweating. The way he opened it made his classmates stare at him. His (still) wet hair moved gorgeously and his sweat (from running) made his skin look shiny and at that very moment, the sunlight made his eyes glisten making him look very beautiful (in a very manly way).

Everyone were open-mouthed at the sight. The girls were all blushing. A certain girl was all red and was at the verge of fainting. **[A/N: I bet all of you know who that certain girl is?]**

Naruto walked by without even noticing the blushes and stares directed at him. He was heavily panting.

"Yo!" greeted Naruto. He turned around and everyone redirected their attention to whatever they were doing.

"Whoa! Nice entrance!" grinned Kiba as he ruffled his best friend's hair.

"Well, what would you expect? He's the number one hyperactive knucklehead student this school has ever seen, remember?" Sasuke commented with a smirk on his face.

"What was that? Wanna fight?" Naruto sneered.

"Oh, c'mon, knock it off, okay? Don't start a fight this early in the morning. Save it for later." Shikamaru sighed, leaning on his chair.

Suddenly the bell rang and right on cue, Sir Iruka entered and everyone sat on their chairs. Time passed quickly and the morning classes were all finished. It was time for lunch and everyone headed to the cafeteria. As usual, the boys ate at the rooftop while the girls mingled in the cafeteria.

The girls were seated at the corner-most table in the cafeteria. Luckily, there weren't many people there at the time.

"Hey, hey! I never knew that Naruto actually looks oh-so-good." Ino squealed.

"Yeah, he was so hot!" Temari laughed. Hinata was sitting quietly, but she was listening to what her friends were saying.

"He is." Sakura smiled.

"Yeah, and his blonde hair looked awesome! His sparkling eyes, his tanned complexion, his goofy yet cute smile, his muscular build, wow! He is super hot, cute, and awesome!" Ino had sparkles in her eyes. Her friends can't help it but laugh. Hinata agreed to what Ino just said, though not verbally, she thought that it was a bit too embarrassing but she ended up blushing a bit.

"He's dreamy when you think about it that way. But Ino, Sai will be really upset if he hears this." Tenten laughed.

"Oh c'mon! Naruto may be hot, but Sai is way hotter!" Ino winked.

"Well, yeah, you can say that." Sakura laughed. They kept on talking about Naruto and the other guys.

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Meanwhile, at the rooftop, the guys were also having a conversation of their own.

"Achoo!" Naruto sneezed loudly. Everyone looked at him. Kiba has a mischievous look on his face.

"Maybe the girls are talking about you right now." Kiba laughed but Naruto didn't know anything about it.

"Eh? Why?" Naruto was as innocent as a little kid.

"Because they think you're hot." Kiba laughed sarcastically.

"What? Me, hot?" Naruto was surprised and he had a slight blush on his face.

"Even Sakura might ask you out." Kiba was still laughing. Sasuke slightly flinched from that comment but no one saw it.

"Really? You think so?" now Naruto is all excited and Kiba just laughed harder.

"Darn it Kiba! You got me all excited for nothing." Naruto pouted which only made Kiba laugh even harder-to the point where he had trouble breathing. The others laughed along.

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The girls suddenly gave attention to Hinata who was quietly enjoying her lunch. They all had smirks on their faces.

"So…Hinata?" Sakura started. Hinata looked at her and immediately had a bad feeling about what was about to happen.

"Uh...yeah?" Hinata gave a questioning look.

"Do you think Naruto is hot?" Ino smiled evilly.

"Uhm…maybe?" Hinata was blushing.

"Hmm…maybe isn't enough." Temari grinned.

"Well…I'm not so sure…" Hinata just blushed an even darker shade of red.

"Okay then…we'll let you off the hook this time, but you'll have to give us a proper answer someday, okay?" Tenten smiled sweetly. Hinata nodded and smiled. They resumed on talking about guys and the new fashion trends and stuff.

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"Hey, Sasuke has been awfully quiet." Naruto commented.

"Well, you already nailed the first two days of your bet and tomorrow, it's do or die." Shikamaru answered.

"Oh, yeah. And I'll definitely win it." Naruto grinned.

"We'll see about that." Sasuke smirked. It seems like he just had a great idea.

"Hmmm…what are you planning?" Naruto eyed suspiciously.

"It's obviously a secret. But you'll find out soon enough…" Sasuke gave a very evil smirk. Naruto gulped and the other guys were curious about this plan Sasuke has.

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So, what do you think? Short, huh? I'll try to make my other chapters longer. Cliffhanger! XD Haha! Can you guess what Sasuke's plan is?

**I really appreciate your reviews and I'm looking forward to reading more. I'd really prefer constructive reviews and comments about my story because I want to know my faults, the parts you liked and did not like, stuff like that.**

**I was actually thinking of discontinuing my story because I'm busy and I'm not that excited about it. But because of your reviews, I felt a bit more excited. Depending on how things will go, it's either I discontinue this story, end it quickly or continue it with all my heart. But please support me till the end! ^_^**


	18. The Plan

**A/N: Sorry for the late update. I've been busy with school yet again. Anyway, I hope you'd be able to enjoy this chapter. ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 18 – The Plan

After the gang finished their lunch, it was their physical education class with Sir Gai. Everyone went to the gym for another 'youthful' class.

"Okay, everyone! Let's play basketball!" Sir Gai announced with his usual cheerful voice. Some cheered and some sighed.

"Man, basketball? This is gonna be easy!" Naruto was confident of his skills.

"We'll see about that." Kiba challenged. They looked at each other as if saying 'it's on!'.

They were all wearing their jerseys. The girls finally entered the room. Naruto looked at the girls, specifically at Sakura. He went over to their direction to give them a couple of compliments. The guys just smiled at his enthusiasm. When Naruto was far enough, it was Sasuke's chance to declare something to the guys. Meanwhile, Sir Gai was still explaining the game mechanics.

"Hey, I have a plan." Sasuke murmured. They looked at him, curious on what he has to say.

"What is it about?" Shikamaru inquired. Sasuke smirked.

"A plan which would make Naruto lose the bet." The guys suddenly had mischievous looks on their faces. Sasuke's smirk only widened.

"Hmmm…we're listening." Neji smirked. Sasuke glanced at Naruto, making sure he isn't listening.

"I'll explain all the details later during our break time. Someone will have to distract Naruto while we're talking about it." Sasuke said.

"How about we ask one of the girls to do that for us?" Sai suggested.

"Good idea. But who will do it?" Neji asked.

"I guess I could ask Ino to do it." Sai answered.

"That'd be great. Okay, Sai, you tell her that. Make sure that he won't know that we're scheming." Sasuke ordered. Sai nodded.

"Naruto's coming back! Act normal." Choji warned. They immediately acted as if nothing happened, yet the mischievous look on their faces still remains.

"Hey! Sakura said that I'm so kind! Isn't that great?" Naruto laughed.

"Yeah, good for you!" Kiba grinned.

"Even the other girls said that I'm such a gentleman." Naruto was flattered.

"Hn. Laugh all you want, you'll lose our bet anyway." Sasuke smirked. And the other guys smirked as well. Meanwhile, Sai is already talking to Ino. Sasuke saw Ino nod and his smirk widened.

"Hmmm? What's up with you guys?" Naruto was starting to get suspicious.

"Oh, nothing, nothing." Kiba smiled. Naruto eyed him."

"You'll know soon enough so just shut it." Sasuke glared.

"Hmph! Jerk!" Naruto pouted and sat on the chair as they listened to the groupings.

"We'll be having a one on one today." Sir Gai said. "Here are the pairings: Shikamaru vs. Neji, Sai vs. Shino, Kiba vs. Choji, Gaara vs. Lee, Sasuke vs. Naruto, Sakura vs. Hinata, Tenten vs. Ino, etc. Now let's start with Shikamaru and Neji."

"What a drag!" Shikamaru sighed as he and Neji both stood up.

"So I'm up against this jerk, huh?" Naruto sighed, glancing at Sasuke.

"Why? Are you scared already? The game hasn't started yet and you're chickening out." Sasuke commented, full of sarcasm in his tone of voice.

"Nah. It's just that this'll be too easy. I'm not even gonna break a sweat." Naruto chuckled which irritated Sasuke.

"Hn. We'll see…idiot." Sasuke smirked, turning his attention to the two playing in the court.

"Why you, jerk!" Naruto hissed, looking at his friends at the court: Shikamaru and Neji.

Shikamaru isn't even showing any effort. He didn't really care if he loses the match, or even if he fails that class. He just wanted to sit back and relax. After a few more minutes, Neji was declared winner. With a score of 0-24, in favor of Neji, of course. Then the other matches proceeded rather quickly. The results are: Sai vs. Shino = Sai wins, Kiba vs. Choji = Kiba wins, Gaara vs. Lee = Lee wins. The next match is between Naruto and Sasuke who are already heated up just from their earlier conversation.

"Now, this'll be a good match." Kiba commented.

"Yeah, judging from their normal arguments, they're awesome rivals." Shikamaru agreed.

"Hn. Also rivals in love." Neji added. They looked at him and nodded.

Naruto and Sasuke stepped on the court and they're eager to win.

"You'll lose, Sasuke. Count on it!" Naruto smirked.

"As I said earlier, We'll see, idiot." Sasuke smirked back. The moment the ball was tossed up in the air, they jumped as high as possible, Naruto was only a millimeter away from touching the ball, but Sasuke beat him to it. The game proceeded smoothly. At the end, they tied. It's because Sasuke is a natural genius and Naruto never gives up no matter how hard things may seem.

"Hey, nice game there!" Kiba said as he gave Naruto a high-five. Naruto and Sasuke are still sweaty from the intense match they just had.

"Hn. I was just being nice and I didn't give it my all." Sasuke teased.

"Yeah right, as if!" Naruto responded.

"Oh, c'mon, that was awesome! Now it's the girls' turn." Sai mentioned and the two stopped arguing and focused on the match. It was Sakura vs. Hinata. They're doing well on the court, even the guys are amazed. Sakura won by just a point. And then, it was Tenten vs. Ino. These two are also quite fierce that's why the match between them was also exciting. Tenten won but the gap isn't that big. After the game, they congratulated each other. They really had so much fun. They rested for a couple more minutes then it was break time.

As planned, Ino took Naruto away from the guys for some 'bonding' time with the girls. Naruto, being a gentleman humbly took the offer to talk to the girls, specially Sakura. Meanwhile the guys stayed at the classroom to discuss their plan.

"Okay, now let's start our meeting. Go ahead, Sasuke." Neji motioned for Sasuke to speak and everyone listened intently.

"So here's the plan. We'll have to make sure that Naruto won't be on school early tomorrow, or else I'll have to pay for your meals and Choji will eat a ton." Sasuke smiled.

"I think we should initiate this plan tomorrow morning." Lee suggested.

"Perhaps, but we'll have to set traps." Sasuke considered Lee's suggestion.

"Hmm…how about tying him on his bed, or turning off his alarm clock?" Sai pondered.

"Yeah, I think that's a great idea. But won't he wake up if we do that?" Neji inquired.

"Nah, he's a heavy sleeper. Once he drifts off to his dreamland, he won't even budge." Shikamaru reassured.

"Hey, hey. What if he discovers our plan and he'll get mad at us?" Kiba asked. The others thought for a moment.

"It'll be fun." Sasuke had a devilish smile on his face.

"Yes, I agree. Besides, it's been a while since we messed around with Naruto. I think it was back in junior high, during a sleepover. Man, brings back some memories.." Shikamaru chuckled a bit.

"Yeah, I remember that one. Naruto looked so funny with whipped cream on his face. He looked like Santa Claus." Kiba laughed, remembering those times back in Junior High.

"Alright, back to the matter at hand. Let's think of ways on how we can delay his arrival on school." Sasuke told them. Then, everyone started to think of several ways to complete their 'mission'.

Meanwhile, Naruto is still with the girls when suddenly the bell rang, signaling that it's time for classes once more. So they went up to their classroom only to find the boys in their usual seats, doing their usual activities like reading books, daydreaming, talking to friends and other usual stuff. Naruto found it a bit suspicious for some reason…

After the class, they were ready to go home.

"Alright, 10pm, okay? Make sure to bring the things we need." Sasuke murmured quietly to his accomplices. They nodded with smirks on their faces. Then, they returned to fixing their stuff.

Naruto was preparing his stuff because he has to go to his part-time job. It's the winery today and he has to stay there until 9pm. He's so excited for tomorrow because it's the final day of the bet. But what he doesn't know, is that his friends has a plan that could make him lose the bet. He bid goodbye to his buddies and he went off to work.

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I hope this one is interesting. Please tell me if you like it or not so I can make it even better in the next chapter. ^_^

**Please review!**


	19. Plan's Initiation

**A/N: I updated faster than I expected. It's probably because ideas are coming in. But I can't promise that it's gonna be this fast every time, okay? I might have writer's block soon. I found some time today so instead of gossiping, I wrote this chapter instead. Here goes…I hope you enjoy! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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Chapter 19 – Plan's Initiation

"Man, I finished work today. Now it's time to get some sleep. I'm sure I'll win the bet!" said Naruto as he walked home, chuckling slightly from the thought of eating as much ramen as he wants without paying for it. He was decided to walk at the park for a couple of minutes. He looked around, the park was very beautiful with all the park lights on. He saw the bench where he and Hinata fed the birds. He smiled from the thought of it. He walked towards it and sat down, remembering the time when they were still feeding the birds, laughing and talking happily with each other.

"I guess I'll have to leave now." Said Naruto as he stood up and continued his way back to the apartment.

Naruto opened the door. His apartment room was on the second floor of the building. It wasn't too small, but wasn't too big either. It had a bathroom, a kitchen, a considerable-sized living room, and a good-sized bedroom. He left his bag near the couch and headed to the bathroom for a shower. After 10 minutes, he went out. His hair is still dripping wet. He looked rather cool while drying his hair with a towel. He wore an orange and black bathrobe with a fox design on the back. After drying his hair and wearing his pajamas, he prepared his bed and set his alarm clock. Lucky for him, he didn't have any homework for that day. He set his alarm on an hour before school just to make sure he won't be late. He glanced at his alarm clock and saw that it was already 10pm. He slipped to the bed and only after a couple of seconds, he's already deeply asleep.

It was 10pm when the gang gathered at the park. They checked the items brought and made sure that their plan won't fail.

"Kiba, do you have the key?" Sasuke asked while rummaging through his bag to make sure he didn't forget anything.

"Yeah, even Shikamaru has one. I think even you have one, right?" Kiba answered, also checking for anything he forgot.

"Yes, I was just making sure if you had one as well." Sasuke, sure that he has everything he needs, closed his bag.

"So, here's our strategy. We'll enter the house in groups of two." Shikamaru said. "Sasuke and Sai, Kiba and Shino, Lee and Neji, Me, Choji and Gaara. Kankuro didn't want to get involved so he didn't come and Gaara will come with me and Choji."

"We'll enter swiftly and quietly. If we wake him up, we'll be in trouble. And make sure no one sees us because they might think we're burglars." Neji reminded. They nodded.

"Sai and I will be in charge of the rope. Kiba and Shino, you guys will deal with the honey. Lee and Neji, whipped cream. Shikamaru, Choji, Gaara, you guys can think of other delay plans." Sasuke told them their positions.

"Are we going to hide his alarm clock?" Sai asked.

"No, it's much better if he wakes up and then struggles to get to school on time." Sasuke smirked.

"But we can't see him struggling and it won't be as much fun." Lee pointed out.

"I brought my laptop and I'll apply some cameras." Shikamaru smiled.

"Yeah, but isn't that sort of like spying?" Choji asked, munching on his chips.

"I'll only put one in his bedroom and one in the living room so it's fine." Shikamaru reassured.

"Good thinking, Shika. So we can use your laptop to see what's happening, right?" Sasuke inquired.

"Of course." Shikamaru smirked.

"Now, let's get this plan into action!" Sasuke said. Everyone agreed and they headed to their victim's house with a mischievous look on their faces.

They finally reached Naruto's house. The first group was Shikamaru, followed by Choji and Gaara. After two minutes, Sasuke received a text message from Shikamaru saying that they successfully entered the house. Sasuke nodded at Sai and they went inside the house. And then, after 5 more minutes, they were all inside. Shino closed the door. The living room was spacious enough for all of them to fit in with some space to spare. Sasuke and Sai were already inside Naruto's room.

The light from the moon was enough to illuminate the whole room even if it was only faint. Naruto's cute sleeping face made them both chuckle silently. The others were quite curious and also entered the room. The same expression was also evident in their faces but they did their best to restrain their laughs. Kiba took out his digital camera and took Naruto's photo. Sasuke took out the rope from his bag and handed the other end of the rope to Sai. While they were working, Kiba went to see how Shikamaru and the others were doing. Shino, Lee, Gaara and Neji were hooking up the cameras. Shikamaru was typing some stuff on his computer, probably some kind of command that would let him control the cameras or something like that. Half an hour later, Sasuke and Sai finished tying up Naruto. The rope wasn't too tight and wasn't too loose either. So Kiba and Shino went to work with the honey and Lee and Neji with the whipped cream.

Kiba and Shino both had a bottle full of honey and they carefully spread it on Naruto's chest and belly. His shirt is going to be so sticky. Meanwhile, Neji and Lee played around with the whipped cream. They put whipped cream on Naruto's face, and made him look like Santa Claus. After he finished his work, Kiba took out something from his bag. It was a cherry. He placed it on Naruto's nose. Kiba took another picture. After being satisfied with their work, they left Naruto's room and went to the living room to check on Shikamaru. Shikamaru glanced at them and then looked back at his laptop's monitor.

"Okay. That's that." Shikamaru whispered as he pressed a button on the keyboard and closed his laptop.

"Alright, let's get out of here." Kiba murmured and everyone left the house as quickly as they can. Before Sasuke went closed the door, he saw Naruto's shoes and a smirk crept to his face when he hid the shoes under Naruto's couch. He didn't hide it completely just for fun.

When all of them were out of the house, they decided to go to the park to rest. When they reached it, they all sat down. Tired from their mischief.

"Hey, Sasuke. You're rich, and treating us all to ramen isn't a big deal for you. Heck, even if you treat us all to ramen for a month, it won't hurt your budget at all." Neji asked, leaning on the bench.

"Yeah. But it's fun, so why not? It's not really a big deal if I lose this bet. I just want to test Naruto's capabilities." Sasuke smirked, staring in the sky.

"That's so much like you. You always like to set the bar higher to those around you so they would do their best and you, in return will do your best even more. You're quite competitive." Kiba chuckled.

"Hn. I guess you could say that." Sasuke answered still gazing upon the stars in the sky.

"This was really fun." Lee commented.

"Yeah. But the real fun will start tomorrow." Shikamaru also gazed up the stars and then everyone did the same.

"I remember back when we were all still in pre-school. We've all been friends since then." Kiba reminisced.

"Yeah. Lots of people bullied Naruto and treated him an outcast but for some reason, we ended up being friends with him." Shikamaru agreed. "I think he has some kind of power to change people and make friends with them.."

"Hmmm…yeah, I think that's true. We're all like brothers, right?" Lee asked. Everyone gave a 'yeah', 'yes', 'of course' and 'yhup'.

"How about us who started being your friends in Junior High?" Sai asked. Gaara was also thinking of asking that but Sai beat him to it.

"Of course you're both like brothers to us as well!" Kiba grinned. Sai and Gaara smiled, happy to be thought of as their brother. After a couple more minutes of star gazing, it was already 11:15

"It's already getting late. We should all head home because we'll probably have a tough day tomorrow when Naruto finds out that we're the ones who planned this." Sasuke suggested as he sat up and swung his bag on his shoulder. The others also fixed their stuff.

"Yeah. So, tomorrow at 6:30, right? That was the time on Naruto's alarm." Kiba asked.

"Make it 6:15." Sasuke answered.

"I'll bring some chips so we can eat while we watch." Choji added.

"Yeah, that'd be great." Neji approved.

"Alright, see you all tomorrow." Kiba said as he started to walk. Then they all headed home with smiles on their faces, obviously filled with anticipation for tomorrow's event.

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Another cliffhanger! I hope you all look forward to the next chapter! Clue: I have a little NaruHina prepared for that chappie! ^_^

**Please review!**


	20. Naruto's Struggle

**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the late update. I was too hooked up with Naruto Shippuden that I forgot to write the next chapter. I hope that you guys will enjoy this! Some were confused with the past chapters so I hope that this would make the story clear and understandable. ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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**Chapter 20 – Naruto's Struggle**

It was 6:00 in the morning and Sasuke just woke up. He entered the bathroom and took a quick shower. After having his shower, he ate his breakfast and left the house. He walked to school because it only takes a few minutes to get there. His parents insisted on taking him to school but Sasuke opposed this idea because it was childish and he can take care of himself. Besides, it would only burden his family because they have a lot work to do.

Sasuke took his time walking even though he can barely hide the excitement of seeing his plan in action. He was approaching the gate when he saw Neji and Shikamaru.

"Yo." Greet Neji. Sasuke nodded and they walked to the building.

"Hey, Sasuke. What if we watch in the AVR **[A/N: AVR – Audio Visual Room]** instead?" Shikamaru suggested as they walked up the stairs.

"I guess." Sasuke considered it.

"Besides, the classroom will be filled by our classmates and we won't enjoy the show." Neji agreed.

"But what are we going to tell the teachers? We can't skip homeroom." Shikamaru added.

"Let's just return before the teacher gets there." Sasuke said.

"Ok. I'll message the others to let them know." Neji took out his phone and they all headed to the AVR.

They opened the door and Sasuke turned on the airconditioning. Shikamaru sat on one of the seats while Neji was still busy with his phone. **[A/N: The seats I mentioned looks like seats on a theatre. ^_^]**

"Hey, Sasuke, wanna use the big screen to watch the show?" Neji asked.

"Sure. Go ahead." Sasuke observed the room. It was pretty spacious. Shikamaru was at the corner of the room, trying to hook up his laptop to the big screen's controls.

"Okay, finished. Now time to test it." Shikamaru turned on his laptop. While he was doing that, the door opened, revealing Lee, Shino, Kiba, Sai and Gaara. They all took a seat.

"This idea to use the theatre is great!" Lee grinned.

"Yeah. But aren't we abusing our authority, Sasuke?" Kiba asked.

"Hn. I don't really care." Sasuke sat down.

"Oh, well." Kiba sighed.

They all waited for Shikamaru to finish. The door opened, it was Choji with a large bag behind him.

"Choji, don't tell me that the contents of that bag…" Kiba wasn't able to finish his sentence when Choji grinned, meaning that what Kiba was thinking was right.

"SNACKS!" Choji grinned.

"I bet you used up your allowance." Neji rolled his eyes.

"Sorta. But it's okay cause today is a special day!" Choji sat down with the guys.

"It's not okay." Shikamaru said without glancing at them. "I'm sure that you'll borrow money from me so it's not okay."

"Oh, c'mon Shikamaru! We're buddies, right?" Choji smiled. Shikamaru just sighed and continued on what he's opened the bag and handed out snacks to everyone.

The screen flashed and an image of Naruto appeared on the big screen. Shikamaru smiled and sat down.

"Now all we have to do is wait for the victim to wake up." Sasuke smiled devilishly.

"I bet he's gonna be so mad." Gaara said.

"Yeah, that's for sure. Let's just pray that he'll forgive us." Kiba smiled.

"We are the worst friends ever." Neji also smiled devilishly and the others chuckled.

A few more minutes later, Naruto's alarm clock started ringing. Naruto tried to reach it to turn it off but to his surprise, he can't move his body. He thought that maybe, he was just dreaming, but soon after, he realized that this wasn't a dream. His eyes flashed open and found himself tied to the bed.

The guys were watching Naruto and they were laughing really hard.

"Darn it! Who did this to me?" Naruto struggled to get the ropes off him. The ropes weren't particularly tight but it's still hard to free himself. Naruto thought for a moment. "There's only one person who would dare do this…No, a certain group of people…" Naruto's eyes flashed with determination.

"Wow, the culprits are already known by the victim…" Choji munched on his snacks.

"Hmmm…knowing them, they'll probably set cameras in the house to watch my struggle…" Naruto considered the possibility and scanned the room for a camera.

"Darn…he's smart." Shikamaru laughed.

"There it is!" Naruto looked straight at the camera placed on his room's ceiling. He glared right at the camera and an evil smile appeared on his face. The guys can't help but smile back even if Naruto can't see them.

"Now, what are you going to do?" Sasuke asked.

"Sasuke, everyone. You really want to challenge me, huh? Then I'll accept your challenge! You think I won't win? Well, think again. I'll prove to you guys that I AM GOING TO WIN!" and with that, Naruto returned to freeing himself.

"Then let's see what you can do, Naruto." Sasuke smirked.

After half an hour, Naruto finally freed himself from the ropes but the moment he stepped on the floor, a new challenge began. The floor had honey and Naruto slipped, face first. Now his whole body is completely covered with honey and when he touched his face, there was whipped cream and he instantly knew that they took a 'Santa' photo of him. Now he really needs a bath. He looked for his towel and dashed to the bathroom.

The guys didn't install a camera in the bathroom so they had to wait for him to finish bathing. He took 10 minutes to completely wash off the honey and whipcream. He went to his room to look for his uniform, careful to avoid the honey on the floor. His uniform was nowhere in sight. He searched for it around the house and finally found it under the bed. He quickly dressed himself and checked his bag to see if there was anything missing. When he was sure that he has everything inside the bag, he went to the door to get his shoes, but they were missing. He checked the bathroom, his room, the kitchen and the living room. He thought that his shoes are well hidden, just like his uniform but what he didn't know was, the uniform was merely a trick because his shoes aren't that well hidden like he thinks they are. He gazed at the foot of his couch and grinned when he realized that those were his shoes hidden there. He looked at his watch and saw that there was a minute left before classes start. His only chance to win the bet is if Sir Iruka reached their classroom late because classes won't start without their teacher and if he reached there before the teacher, it's still technically his win. With that ray of hope, he dashed out of the house, full speed ahead.

* * *

Meanwhile, at school, the guys quickly took their stuff out of the room and headed to the classroom.

"Let's just hope that our plan proceeds smoothly." Neji said, running with the guys to the classroom which wasn't far from the theatre.

They reached the room but before they entered, they fixed themselves first. After all, they do hold quite a reputation in the school. They sat down as if nothing happened but Neji noticed that Hinata was not in the room.

"Hey, do you know where Hinata is? It's almost time for class and she's still not here." Neji asked the guys.

"I don't know, but Sakura, Temari, Tenten and Ino aren't here as well." Sai mentioned.

"Wait, I have a hunch. I'm not sure if it's true but we'll just have to wait." Sasuke was suspicious but they decided to wait.

It was already 5 minutes past 7:30. Sir Iruka is late and that rarely happens. The guys were getting nervous because Naruto has a chance to win. Five more minutes passed and there's still no sign of Sir Iruka or the girls mentioned earlier. The door slid open. They looked, hoping that it's their teacher but to their disappointment, it's none other than Naruto Uzumaki.

"Darn! He beat us!" Neji smirked.

"Hn. Lucky." Sasuke smirked as well. Watching as Naruto appoached his seat. He was heavily panting and sweating.

"What do you think happened?" asked Sai.

"You said you had a hunch, Sasuke. What is it?" Choji inquired.

Sasuke was about to answer when the door opened, revealing Sir Iruka and the and the guys looked at Sasuke.

"You don't mean…" Sai was pretty sure that Sasuke's answer is 'hn'.

"Hn. They're responsible." Sasuke sighed.

The guys looked at the girls but they just winked and the guys can't help but sigh. Sir Iruka ordered the class to sit down.

"Sorry for being late. These girls asked me to help out with some work but I have this feeling that they were just buying some time. But I won't ask anything about that matter." Sir Iruka smiled at Hinata. Hinata smiled back.

It was lunch time and Naruto and the guys went to the rooftop but the girls went with them.

"It was a perfect plan. If only we took the girls into consideration." Shikamaru sighed.

"I bet you thought that we won't interfere." Ino stuck her tongue out.

"But since when did you know?" Sai asked.

"Just this morning." Tenten smiled.

"Huh?" The guys said in unison.

"Hinata was looking for you guys when she went to the AVR. She saw the video of Naruto's struggle and decided to help." Ino explained.

"And since we're very good friends, we decided to help out too. Besides, ganging up on him isn't nice." Tenten added.

"Hinata was the one who thought of stalling Sir Iruka until Naruto got to school. And we had Temari as a look out for Naruto's arrival." Sakura smiled.

"Geez…I'm so happy that you helped me." Naruto smiled. He looked at Hinata and hugged her. "Thank you, Hinata! You're a life saver!"

"It's no big deal." Hinata was as red as a tomato.

"Hey, what about our hug?" Ino winked. Naruto smiled and hugged all of the girls.

"You were very mean!" Naruto yelled at the guys.

"Yeah, we are. But you can never stay mad at us cause we're like your family!" Kiba laughed and ruffled Naruto's hair. They all laughed.

"But you guys have to clean my house!" Naruto said.

"Yeah. I guess. It was our fault so we'll have to clean it." Shikamaru agreed.

"Then we'll help too!" Ino volunteered.

"Sure! I don't mind!" Naruto accepted.

"Sasuke, you'll have to treat us!" Naruto smirked.

"Hn. Sure." Sasuke continued to eat.

"Yay!" The girls cheered together. The guys laughed. Sasuke even had a faint smile on his face.

After school, they all went for ramen and Choji finished 10 bowls all by himself. They had fun laughing and Sasuke seemed to have fun as well. When it was time to pay, Kiba noticed Sasuke's wallet was filled with cash.

"Hmmm? You've anticipated your loss?" Kiba whispered.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Sasuke smiled and payed.

After eating, they went to Naruto's house. It was so messy. It took them an hour just to finish cleaning but they still had fun in doing so. It was already getting late and the guys decided to be kind enough to take the girls home safely. Sai went with his girlfriend, Ino. Shikamaru and Choji went with Tenten. Gaara went with his sister, Temari. Since Sakura's and Hinata's house were in the same diretion, they decided to go together. Neji, Sasuke, Shino and Lee accompanied them. Naruto had work to do so he went to a separate direction.

"Man, what a fun, tiring and unforgettable day this is!" Naruto smiled while heading to work.

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**How was it?**

**Please review! Thanks a lot! ^_^**

**I'll work hard on the next chapter! **


	21. Naruto's Aching Heart

**A/N: I apologize for the very late update. I had a little writer's block and I didn't know what to write, but good thing I came up with a good enough chapter. I've put some NaruHina as compensation so I hope you all like it! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

* * *

**Chapter 21 – Naruto's Aching Heart**

The school festival is drawing near and everyone at school is busy for the preparations. The student council is especially busy due to the fact that the success of this event lies on their managing skills and leadership.

Even if they had a lot of work to do, classes were still held, much to the students' dismay. It was already about lunch time and the guys headed to the cafeteria as usual to have lunch when Naruto remembered something. He stopped on his tracks, causing his friends to look at him, wondering what's wrong.

"Hey, what's the matter?" asked Kiba who looked at Naruto.

"Oh, I think I left my money back at the classroom…" said Naruto as he searched his pockets.

"Geez…how careless can you be?" commented Neji. Naruto just scratched his head and laughed.

"I'll go get it. You guys go get some food and I'll just catch up." Naruto said a s he turned around and ran through the hallway.

"Hurry or we'll eat without you!" Choji yelled and Naruto waved a hand. They turned around and continued walking to the cafeteria.

Naruto was near the classroom when he heard voices coming from inside it. He stopped and decided to let the people inside to finish their conversation before entering, rather than just barging in.

"Just give up, Sakura!" a voice from the room said. Naruto was leaning on the wall near the door when he heard the name Sakura. He leaned closer to the door to hear the voices clearly. _'So, judging from the voice, I bet Ino was the one who spoke just now…' _though Naruto. Two female students just passed by and whispered something to each other. Naruto heard the word 'creep' from the two and he immediately straightened himself and acted innocently.

"Wait, why was I eavesdropping anyway? I DO feel like a creep now…" Naruto whispered to himself. Another voice spoke, and from the sound of it, it was Sakura's voice. Naruto leaned slightly to the door, just enough for him to listen properly. He completely forgot about the whole 'creep' thing.

"No way, Ino." said Sakura who sounds rather annoyed.

"You already know that Sasuke doesn't like you so why bother? You're just wasting your time, effort, and feelings on that guy." Ino hissed, also annoyed.

"I can't help it. I like him and that's that." said Sakura. Ino frowned. Naruto winced at what Sakura said. He's fully aware of the fact that Sakura is head-over-heels in love with Sasuke but it still hurts.

"Sakura, there are a lot of guys who like you. There's Naruto who likes you so much. Why go for someone who doesn't care about you if there is someone like Naruto who really cares for you?" Ino said. Sakura sighed. Naruto's heart is beating fast. He wants to know Sakura's answer to that, but at the same time, he doesn't want to know. He's scared at what Sakura might say.

"Naruto is kind, cheerful, adorable and hardworking…" said Sakura. Naruto feels that a blush is going to appear on his face but he feels really uneasy. "But…he's is more like a brother to me. Sasuke is the one I like. Please understand."

And with that, Naruto's heart started sinking. Before Naruto could fall into a depressed state, Ino's voice surprised him.

"Are you stupid or what? You'll only get heart-broken. I'm telling you this for your own good. You're pretty, smart, kind and strong. That guy doesn't deserve you at all. He's just heartless and stupid. There's nothing good about him. Think about it!" Ino said in a rather high tone but not exactly a yell.

"Ino! How many times do I have to repeat it to you? It's Sasuke I like! And don't be so mean about him! Just because he dumped you when you confessed to him doesn't mean that you have the right to insult him! I won't let you talk about him that way, Ino!" Sakura retorted in an equally high tone. Sakura's reaction made Ino speechless. They stood there for a while, trying to calm themselves, but they didn't know that a certain boy was listening to their conversation.

That certain boy is currently staring at nothing. The only thing in his mind right now is a continuous flashback of what he just heard. He stayed like that for a couple of seconds, until finally, a gentle voice reached him.

"Naruto…" said the voice again. Naruto blinked a few times and looked at the person calling him. It was Hinata and she looked quite worried.

"Oh, Hinata. What's the matter?" Naruto asked innocently.

"Naruto, I'm the one who should ask you that question…" she giggled sweetly. A small smile formed on his lips just from seeing Hinata. She stopped giggling and looked at him.

"Oh, really? Sorry about that." Naruto chuckled and scratched the back of his head.

"I tried calling you a couple of times already, but you didn't respond." Hinata frowned and worry is quite evident in her eyes.

"Did I really space out that much? I'm sorry to worry you, but I'm okay now. So please cheer up, okay?" Naruto grinned but it wasn't a whole-hearted one. Hinata blushed but she can sense that there's still something bothering him.

"Naruto, is something wrong?" Hinata said quietly, just barely enough for Naruto to hear.

"Hmm? What makes you say that?" Naruto asked.

"Well, you don't seem to be as cheerful as you usually are…" Hinata looked at the floor. Naruto was about to say something when the doors opened which surprised them.

"Oh, hey Naruto, hey Hinata!" Ino greeted as she moved from the doorway.

"Hey…" Naruto greeted back.

"What's going on?" Ino asked. Sakura looked at Naruto as she stepped out of the doorway. They looked at each other's eyes for a few seconds then Naruto looked away. Sakura wondered why.

"Oh, nothing…" Naruto answered, still not looking at Sakura's direction. He didn't mean to be rude or anything, but he feels so upset whenever he remembers Sakura's words that he doesn't have enough strength to face her right now.

"Naruto, is there a problem?" asked Sakura, wanting to know the reason behind Naruto's action. Naruto looked at them and smiled, but the three girls are all aware that there is something wrong.

"There's nothing to worry about. Oh, I forgot, I have to go get my money now. See you girls later!" said Naruto as he hurriedly entered the classroom and took the money in his bag. He ran straight to the cafeteria soon after.

After buying his lunch, he went up the stairs to meet up with the guys in the rooftop. _'What's wrong with me? I'm just making people worry about me. This is something I have to handle by myself, I shouldn't involve others...' _thought Naruto as he walked through the hallways. He soon reached the door to the rooftop. Before he opened it, he put on a fake grin, hoping that it would successfully deceive his friends...

* * *

**I know that it's pretty short. It's just that I haven't picked a suitable way of solving Naruto's problem yet and at the same time, I didn't want to make you guys wait any longer, so please bear with it for now. Do you think it was too early to have this scene in the story? I try to make it as realistic and romantic as possible so the progress of the story is similar to those seen in some animes…**

**By the way, I've been thinking of doing character POVs. I'd like to ask your opinion whether I should try it or just stick with a Normal POV…**

**If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. I'll do my best to avoid confusion. Anyway, please read and review! ^_^ Thanks!**


	22. Recovered Cheerfulness

**A/N: I'm back! Really Sorry for the super late update…School started.. I hope that this chapter would satisfy you guys! I've decided to just keep on using normal POV for my fanfic. Enjoy~!**

**Sakura: Naruto is avoiding me!  
Naruto: I'm sorry Sakura! I can't face you right now… *runs off*  
Sakura: See? What did I do?  
Sasuke: Leave him alone. He'll snap out of it soon (probably) …  
Sakura: Sasuke! *sparkly eyes***

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any characters associated in this story.**

* * *

**Chapter 22 – Recovered Cheerfulness**

Naruto opened the door to the rooftop with a huge smile plastered on his face. His friends stared at him suspiciously. He walked to his friends and sat down.

"Hey, is something wrong?" asked Kiba. Naruto looks normal but he and the others are sensing that there's something bothering Naruto.

"Hmm? What makes you say that? I'm completely fine." Naruto chuckled which only made his friends more suspicious.

"Something smells fishy…" Choji mumbled and the others nodded.

"Oh, maybe it's because of this tuna sandwich…" Naruto chuckled nervously as he showed his friends a sandwich.

"Are you trying to make us laugh with that? Just tell us what happened already, you idiot." Sasuke said sarcastically but he is indeed concerned with his idiotic friend.

"There's nothing wrong with me so let's just eat our lunches in peace…" Naruto retorted with a frown as he munched on a sandwich. The others just looked at him and sighed. They'll just have to let him solve his problem. And so, they all ate their lunch without saying a word to each other.

Soon after finishing their lunch, they all headed back to the classroom. A few more minutes later, everyone else entered the room and their next teacher did as well. Their class proceeded as normal but a certain orange haired boy didn't seem to be listening at all. That boy just looked out the window, his eyes filled hinting two emotions; sadness and confusion. His friends occasionally looks at him, but he didn't notice at all.

"Hey, you think Naruto's sick or something?" asked Lee.

"Nah. Even if he's sick, he will still be a blabbermouth…" said Sasuke, crossing his arms.

"Yeah. Sasuke's right…" Sai agreed and the others nodded.

"Then what's wrong with him?" Neji asked. The others thought for a moment.

"I have an idea on why he's acting that way. Don't worry, I'll handle it. If my guess is right, then I can easily talk to Naruto about it. If he still acts that way tomorrow, we'll seriously make him talk about what's bothering him. Agreed?" Kiba said with a small smirk.

"Sure. That's great." Everyone also smirked.

It was already their last class for the day and Naruto is still in the same state. Their teacher for that class was Kakashi and he is teaching history. Kakashi noticed how different Naruto is acting today. Naruto didn't really pay much attention to class, but today, it's as if Naruto is in another world. When Naruto and Sakura happen to lock gazes, Naruto looks away. The same thing happens when he looks at Sasuke. His friends are seriously getting worried. The bell rang and they were also done with the day's prop and costume making. The girls brought the costume materials home to finish them there.

"Okay Kiba. We'll count on you!" said the guys as they left the school building and headed home. Kiba was at the front gates of the school when Naruto ran out of the building.

"Hey Naruto. Off to work?" asked Kiba.

"Huh? Oh…yeah…" Naruto faked a smile.

"I thought your work for today starts at 7:30? It's still 5pm." Kiba said.

"Oh, yeah. Right. I forgot." Naruto scratched the back of his head.

"Well, since you still have two and a half hours, why don't we play ball in the gym?" asked Kiba.

"But we're not supposed to be in the gym. The janitor locks it, right?" Naruto said.

"I already asked the principal. Principal Tsunade said it's okay. As long as we clean it after we finish and then lock it up. And we can only stay till 7." Kiba smiled.

"Eh? Aren't you just using your authority as a student council member?" Naruto chuckled. Now he's being a little more Naruto-ish.

"Haha. Who knows? C'mon!" Kiba chuckled and they both ran to the gym.

They played one-on-one. They ran around the court and did some 3-pointers, dunks, lay-up shots, etc. After an hour of playing, they were so exhausted and fell on the floor, sweating heavily and panting.

"Darn it! I lost! And it's so close too! Just one point!" Kiba yelled but still panting quite heavily.

"Haha…it's because you missed that last shot. Anyway…I still won. What did I win?" Naruto laughed but he is also panting as heavily as Kiba.

"Hmmm…how about I treat you to Ichiraku? But you can only have up to 10 bowls." Kiba smirked.

"Yay!" Naruto cheered. If he weren't so tired at the moment, he'd jump up. But he was glued to the floor.

"Anyway, Naruto…what happened earlier? You were okay this morning." Kiba finally said.

"Uh…nothing's wrong…haha." Naruto faked a laugh.

"Nope, you're hiding something…" Kiba insisted.

"What could I be hiding?" Naruto asked.

"That's what I want to know. We're all worried about you so you might as well spit it out so we can do something about it." Kiba looked at the gym's ceiling. **[A/N: Well, yeah..of course he'll look there. He's lying on the floor.]**

Naruto didn't say anything. There was silence for a minute and then Kiba decided to talk again.

"Does it have to do something with Sakura?" Kiba asked. He saw Naruto flinch from the corner of his eye.

"Hmmm…bull's eye. So it had something to do with Sakura. Let me guess. You heard her say something like…"I love Sasuke!" or something like that…" Kiba added. Silence.

"It..it's nothing…" Naruto looked away and frowned.

"We're friends, aren't we? We should always help one another. The guys are worried…" Kiba sighed. "And I know that you were already aware that Sakura holds feelings for Sasuke, right? You shouldn't be this shocked about it…"

"I know that! But it's just too painful. I don't know what to do..I'm so confused right now…" Naruto said, frustration evident in his voice.

"I know what you feel…but you should also consider other people's feelings, right? You can't just force your feelings on Sakura." Kiba said sympathetically.

"I know…but.." Naruto said, his voice trailing off…

"It's hard…I know that…but I know you can do it. Besides, the battle's not over yet, right? You still have a chance. So don't give up." Kiba chuckled. Naruto looked at Kiba and smiled.

"I guess you're right. Thanks pal. I owe you…" Naruto chuckled as well. His cheerfulness has returned.

"Oh, so since you owe me, I don't have to treat you to Ichiraku, huh?" Kiba smirked as he sat up.

"That's a different matter!" Naruto pouted as he sat up as well. They looked at each other and laughed.

They stood up and cleaned the gym because they're gonna get it from the principal if they leave it like that. Afterwards, they took a short shower in the shower rooms and then locked the gym. They headed to the Ichiraku shop and ate a lot of ramen. Naruto finished 12 bowls while Kiba had 8. Naruto obviously payed for the other two bowls he ate, because Kiba simply refused to pay for them even though Naruto used his puppy dog eyes attack. After eating, Naruto only had 10 minutes before work so he thanked Kiba (for the treat and for making him realize that he made others worry) and ran off.

After he finished his shift, he headed home for a good night's sleep. On his way, he passed the park and remembered Hinata.

"I should apologize to the guys for making them worry. And to Sakura for being rude…and to Hinata as well…" he stared at the bench where Hinata feeds the birds and a smile formed on his face.

* * *

**Wahhh…I finally updated it but it's still too short. I easily get bored, so I end up doing short chapters…Sorry about that.**

**I'm also worried about its content. I hope that it wasn't too bad…**

**I have no experience in these kinds of things (or do I?) so I don't know how it feels…all I have is knowledge from the animes I've watched… ^_^**

**Anyway, I hope you liked it and please keep on supporting me! :D**


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